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We're All Dying for a Big Mac Essay

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We're Dying for a Big Mac

You have been at the office all day long, slaving over a telephone and a computer terminal. It's lunch time, and you've got an hour to eat. No problem; there's a McDonald's a mere five minutes from the office. You could go there-it's hot, it's fast, and it's convenient. Besides, they supposedly have healthy foods like chicken and fish on the menu. Approximately 45.8 million people are served at fast food restaurants every day in America, and why not? Fast foods are pre-prepared meals that are served quickly at several restaurants strategically located throughout nearly every American city. But there is a downside to the convenience they provide: they simply are not good for us.

Americans are …show more content…

In fact, poor eating habits and lack of exercise is the leading cause of obesity today (13A). As Brown argues:

Some fast food restaurants have sixty-seven grams of fat in just one meal; you start with the burgers, which have fat as they are, then cheese is put on, adding still more fat. Then you get double burgers and double cheeseburgers along with sauces, which are sometimes made of fat-one-sixth the maximum recommended daily intake. According to the National Institute of Health (NIH) and other agencies, Americans should eat 25 percent less fat per day, that would mean a decrease to about 67 grams. (33)

With fast food restaurants creating bigger burgers every year, Americans are taking in more fat in one burger than they should for an entire day's worth of meals; for example, a Big Mac at McDonald's contains 34 grams of fat; a Double Whopper with cheese at Burger King has about 61 grams of fat, and at Wendy's, their triple cheeseburger (now being phased out) has a huge 68 grams. This year, McDonald's plans to release the biggest burger ever, the Mega Mac, which consists of two quarter-pound beef patties and "special sauce" which is a mayonnaise-based product (Engle 93).

Many fast food restaurants place certain foods that have a reputation for being good for you on the menu to make you believe that they

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