Fat Tax: A Tax For A Healthier America

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In the past 60 to 70 years the fast food industry has been one of America’s bittersweet phenomenons. Its the foods that people undeniably crave served all in the matter of minutes at a beyond reasonable low cost, sounds almost too good to be true. With 60 million Americans served fast food everyday its safe to say its very enticing ( “Fast food statistics”, 2014). All the deliciousness aside, most rational individuals are aware of the underlying immoral results from frequent consumption of fast food. Giving way to the cliche, fitting perfect for fast food supporters, “Everything is good in moderation.” With all the recents cutbacks and reforms towards child obesity, currently one of the nations biggest epidemics, the thought of an increase of tax on fast foods has become a hot topic. With sugared soda beverages already banned from public schools and multiple programs implemented against our nations problems with child obesity, a tax on fast only seems like the next logical step towards resolving this issue. Opposers believe it will have minimal effect and its just another tax on the poor. With that said a substantial gain of tax revenue that the government would receive from this decision and reducing highly fattening food consumption amongst adolescence, there seems to be cognitive reason to enforce such a law. 44 percent of Americans eat fast food at least once per week (“Fast food statistics”, 2014) and kids between the ages of 6 and 14 eat fast food 157 million times every month (Ransohoff Julia, 2013). Just in the past 3 decades the obesity rates in children have more than tripled (Kalaidis Jen, 2013). Needless to say, whether once a year or 3 times a week, fast food is a definitely part of most Americans nutrition. Acco... ... middle of paper ... ...ica. Works Cited "Fast Food Statistics." Statistic Brain RSS. Pew Research Center, 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 20 May 2014. Kalaidis, Jen. "Should the U.S. Adopt a Fat Tax?" The Week. N.p., 25 Feb. 2013. Web. 20 May 2014. Melnick, Meredith. "Fast Food’s Biggest Customer: Not the Poor, But the Middle Class | TIME.com." Time. Time, 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 May 2014. Messerli, Joe. "Should Products Which Contribute to Obesity (Such as Big Macs and Krispy Kreme Donuts) Be Taxed?" BalancedPolitics.org - Fat Tax (Pros & Cons, Arguments For and Against, Advantages & Disadvantages). N.p., 11 Aug. 2011. Web. 20 May 2014. Pettinger, Tejvan. "Economics Essays: Fat Tax: Why We Should Tax Unhealthy Foods." Economics Help. N.p., 14 July 2007. Web. 22 May 2014. Ransohoff, Julia. "Fast Food." Doctors, Patient Care, Health Education, Medical Research. N.p., Oct. 2013. Web. 20 May 2014.

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