According to the National Restaurant Association, one study showed that restaurant food represents about a fourth of Americans’ total caloric intake and one third of total sodium consumption. The restaurants of the fast food industry spend billions of dollars a year to market their products. According to cspinet.org, only 2% of food advertising is for fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans, compared to the 90% for foods and beverages high in fats, salt, or added sugars featured on Saturday morning television.
The inherent problem with fast food restaurants is food quality, enhancing taste by adding increased calories, fasts, sodium and sugar. Wendy’s menu is no exception. “Wendy’s Dave’s Hot N Juicy ¾ Ib Triple Cheeseburger, the calories in it are 1,090, 66 grams of fat and sodium is 1,990” (America’s Best and Worst Food). “Soft drinks can lead to obesity, research found out that for every can or glass of sugar- sweetened beverage a child drank during that time, the child’s body mass index inched up and the chances of becoming obese increased to 60%” (Eric Schlosser pg. 56).
In 2015, Alabama rated at least 35.6 percent of its population obese. The obesity rate is the 2nd highest within the 51 states included in the United States. Researchers have found that over the past four decades, the consumption of food eaten away from home has also ascended critically. It is well known that eating excessive amount of fast food may lead to large amounts of calorie consumption and strengthens the encounter of obesity because of ample portion sizes and increased energy mass of the fast food items. Fast foods are typically high in calories, fat, simple carbohydrates, sodium (salt). Fast-food consumption costs were nearly
The high levels of calories, fat and sodium in most fast food Figure 2: In 2009 a cartoon by Vanessa about how contradiction and irony happened when "healthy meals" shows up in fast food restaurant
People eat about one-third of their meals at restaurants, a figure that has almost doubled since the late 1970s.2 Fast food consumption is even higher among adolescents, with 75% eating fast food at least once a week.3
New innovations in the food industry also play a role in the increase of obesity. The creation and popularity of processed foods, genetically modified organisms, pesticides, and dangerous chemicals and toxins like fructose corn syrup have a detrimental effect on human health. People in the United States spent 6 billion dollars every year on fast food in the 1970s. However, this number dramatically increased in the year 2000 when the amount spent annually on fast food jumped to 110 billion dollars (Wile, Elise). Tons of money is also spent on enticing fast food advertisements, which draws many people in.
America is known as the fattest country in the world. Is fast food the culprit? According to the article, "F as in Fat 2005," America's obesity rate in 2005 was a whopping 60%. Many people believe that this is due to the increasing popularity in fast food. It is much easier to go through a drive through and pick up a meal than making the food yourself. When eating out, people are more likely to eat more than when they cook. Meals at fast food and restaurants have become popular, in America the size of each meal is significantly bigger than any other country. According to Christina Sarlch, author of “Guess How Many Calories Are In A Typical Fast Food Meal” the amount of calories in a fast food meal is a gouging 1100 calories with a drink .The average number of calories needed for a person is 2000-2500 calories . Split between 3 meals that averages out to 666.67-833.33 calories a meal. Of course not many people follow that suggested calorie intake.
Times have been tough when it comes to the economy but fast food franchises stocks are at an all time high. These fast food restaurants make it incredibly easy to get plenty of cheap food but with very low quality. They offer incredibly deals to lure people in while giving them basically “empty calories”. These calories are from solid fats or added sugars. Solid fats and added sugars add calories to the food but few or no nutrients. Empty calorie foods give short bursts of energy and hardly fulfill appetites which in makes a person eat much more than if they had eaten food with nutritional value. Little Caesars offers a pizza for 5 dollars while Mcdonalds Mcdouble cheese burger is only a dollar. It’s incredibly sad that you can buy a hamburger for cheaper than buying an apple.
In the US there is over 500,000 fast food restaurants. These restaurants provide cheaper meals for those with low income and also jobs that are subjected to low pay with no benefits. Doubling the weight of an average person, these restaurants can give you that quick energy you’ll need while working there. Greasy, cheap, sugary restaurants contribute greatly to our already booming economy.
Hook/Attention getter: Isn’t fast food is your first choice in your daily life when thinking about eating? According to the National Restaurant Association (2005), the total sales of fast food in America reached $163.5 billion. Thus, the fast food industry is becoming a global business as well.
The fast food industry provides quick, cheap, and easy access to foods that in the customers opinion, is very delicious, and affordable, however this food which millions of people around the world are constantly consuming, could actually cause major health problems, and weight gain in the long run. Major fast food companies throughout the world know what they are doing when it comes to marketing towards all types of people. Some people will find numerous different things to blame for the epidemic of fast food making individuals overweight. In recent research on, or discussions of the fast food industry having an effect on people's health, a controversial issue has been raised, and that is the fact that this problem affects not only
Almost all food served at fast food restaurants has an extremely high fat and calorie content and lacks nutritional value.
Several studies have shown that the increase in fast food restaurants over the past few decades has resulted in a negative impact on the already outrageous obesity rate.According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the number of fast food restaurants over the past thirty years has tripled, which equates to about three hundred thousand establishments in the United States alone. During this time the number of children, ages six to nineteen classified as obese, has risen from five percent to seventeen percent. The percentage of adults classified as obese has risen from half to two-thirds the population. Although fast food restaurants may be a contributing factor to the increasing obesity rate in the United States, people are
Therefore, it is important that food providers participate in campaigns developed by governments in their attempt to improve eating habits. Restaurants that provide healthy food have a better image on the market in comparison with fast food restaurants. But health food is considered to be more expensive. This refers to higher production costs, increased costs of
As the fast food world spread across the nation, obesity was shortly following in its footsteps. According to, “The History of the Fast Food Industry,” Since 1970 the amount of fast food restaurants have doubled, which equates to roughly 300,000 establishments in the United States. Ironically, 33.8% of the U.S. population is affected by obesity and 19% of children and young adults are also affected.
The environmental factors that surround us while we are shopping or eating at a restaurant can and do affect our behavior and consumption. Sounds, sights, and smells are some of these factors, and while we may not be aware that they are having an effect on us, they are. Many stores, shopping malls, and restaurants try to purposely portray certain types of sounds, sights, and smells that they think will inadvertently entice customers into their establishments and spend money. This past week I visited two different stores, Younkers and Bath & Body Works, and I will be discussing the different sounds, sights, and smells I experienced at both places and what affect I think they had or could have on human behavior and consumption.