The main cause of eating fast food is that we are running a fast pace life and we seem to find no time in the day to sit down and prepare a healthy food for ourselves. Therefore, fast food restaurants are continuing to grow their business and we are continuing to put our health at risk as consumers. Thus, in my opinion consuming fast food is not a wise choice for any of us and we should stay away from eating it because it has many drawbacks than the benefits. The changes in lifestyle worldwide from past few decades have shown a great impact on the pattern of food consumption. One of the most common trends in consumption of fast food is eating food outside the home. Family work pattern has also changed and as have family structure,
Most people today recognize that fast food meals are generally not very beneficial to one’s health, regardless of their decision to consume them. What many people do not understand is how much better a home cooked meal can be when compared to these cheap and tasty options. When examining the American fast food diet, home cooked meals provide healthier cooking methods, lower risk for health disorders, and lower obesity rates.
Fast food is widely considered a hallmark of American culture, but has spread worldwide. In a society where everyone is always on the go, the fast food industry has persuaded people to give up quality in favor of artificially-enhanced taste and drive thru convenience. Experts often blame fast food for obesity and related health problems. By using advancing kitchen technology to move towards efficient large-scale production rather than increased quality, the fast food industry has created lower quality food, forced lower standards of taste, and has caused adverse health effects in it’s consumers.
Over the past decade, debates regarding the fast food industry occur frequently. Its substantial impact on the world has changed a way of life, specifically in the United States. The concept of the fast food industry was to create a method that would allow people to purchase cooked food at a faster rate than preparing a meal at home. This method was first introduced to deliver options to those who needed to chow down for lunch but did not have the availability to sit at a restaurant. Although this concept increasingly became famous for its low price and its aspects of social dining, most people are dependent on this method of eating for most of its meals. Most people are aware of its dangers it can have on someone’s health; however, fast foods’ marketing strategies allow companies to maintain it corporate power in the global economy. The most popular fast-food chain is undoubtedly McDonalds.
customers. Fast foods on the other hand are low cost and involve easy to prepare meals. The
Fast food has infiltrated every nook and cranny of American society. Everywhere you turn you can see a fast food restaurant. An industry that modestly began with very few hot dog and hamburger vendors now has become a multi-international industry selling its products to paying customers. Fast food can be found anywhere imaginable. Fast food is now served at restaurants and drive-through, at stadiums, airports, schools all over the nation. Surprisingly fast food can even be found at hospital cafeterias. In the past, people in the United States used to eat healthier and prepared food with their families. Today, many young people prefer to eat fast food such as high fat hamburgers, French-fries, fried chicken, or pizza in fast
In Eric Schlosser book ‘Fast Food Nation’ he discusses his findings of the fast food industry and exposes it for what it is. Fast food has been an American tradition for over half a century and it’s not a mystery why. Fast food is the most convenient, quick, and cheapest way to get a meal. Not only is fast food cheap and convenient, it’s also loaded with grease and fat to make sure it keeps you coming back. Fast food has become almost more common than eating at home with “about half of the money used to buy food spent is at restaurants, mainly fast food restaurants.”(Schlosser) Fast food is causing problems because of the unsafe slaughterhouse conditions, questionable quality of food, and its advertising towards children.
Bittman says that choosing fast food over a home-cooked meal is horrible. He talks about how society nowadays thinks that it is cheaper to go through fast food restaurants than make your meals at home. In his article, Bittman says that “hyperprocessed food remains more expensive than food cooked at home.” Another point he makes is that people think that junk food is cheaper for its calories. People think
So is going through the drive thru of your favorite fast food restaurant really cheaper than making a meal at home for your family? In today’s time it has become more relevant to get what is more convenient and cheapest regarding to food. People are less concerned with the health benefits, whether that means going by McDonalds for dinner than making a home cooked meal or eating junk food than a healthy alternative snack. People are doing what seems to be the most convenient and inexpensive route, but the problem is that Americans lack knowledge regarding junk food and real food which is interfering with their health. High amounts of processed foods are being consumed by Americans because they are tight budgeted and don’t have the time to cook
Many restaurants have a dollar menu or a value menu, where food is offered for a cheap price. Meals are around $5-$6 and by buying more food to make it a meal, money is being saved. An entrée, side, and a drink on their own could be close to $7-$8, but by making a meal out of it, a dollar or two is saved. This seems to lure people into buying meals because they are technically saving money and getting more food out of it. At fast food restaurants, they have cut the sizes of shakes, fries, and other foods in order to keep prices set at $1 and not give away the store. Fast food owners are not a fan of the dollar menus for the reason that there is not much profit being earned. Although owners are not fond of the menus, customers are very fond of them and owners know this will increase the amount of customers coming back to their restaurants (Tuttle, 2014). Parents are more prone to go to a fast food restaurant for dinner since it is fast, efficient, and affordable. A family of five can easily eat at McDonald’s for $20-$25, while going out to a real restaurant would be around $50 or more. Fast food restaurants know that keeping their prices low will encourage customers to keep coming back. Parents know they can rely on fast food restaurants for cheap meals for their kids and if they go often enough, kids are being exposed to addictive foods, causing obesity. Although fast food is cheaper, the prices add
From the advancement in technology, food preparation has changed over the twentieth century from food mainly being cook and prepared in a home setting to now mainly being prepared and served through lines of a fast food restaurant. With people on the move from place to place and having a busy schedule, people now rely on fast food restaurants for main course meals. Even though fast food has provided food for people with a low income or no money at all, fast food still have processed food, preservatives, and filters that can cause cancer and other harmful effects.
As a society, people are always moving forward in their daily lives. People will be spending most of their time working, going to school, or simply hanging out with friends and there is no additional time for them to prepare a healthy cooked meal done at home. Fast food literally serves people their meals quickly. For example, when I am out of class and starving, I quickly go to the nearest restaurant and get myself a taco or anything I can get my hands on to eat. Generally speaking, fast food is making people lazier to cook a healthy meal like myself. The article “What’s to Blame for the Surge in Super-Size Americans” by Tori DeAngelis articulates, “More people are eating out than ever, and restaurant food tends to be higher in fat and calories and served in bigger portions than meals made at home”(DeAngelis 292). People eating more fast food than at home will bring risks of obesity; however, that can be prevented if people decide to cook a home cooked meal and limit their portion size. It is important for people to learn to cook a healthy meal at home, and they must avoid getting a quick meal at a fast food restaurant. The food at home is a way better option than eating out, especially since a person can decide what kind of ingredients they want to add and how much of it. People also do not eat at home because eating at a fast food restaurant is
Obesity is weighing this country down. Fast food restaurants have become incredibly prominent and reliable throughout the United States. A commonly used excuse that America’s newfound obesity issue is due to the comparatively cheaper fast food to that of an organic meal is thought to be misconceived. Although it is true that fast food in fact is cheaper than purchasing an organic meal, there are healthier affordable alternatives than fast food. Nevertheless, the issue is, who is to blame? The fast food companies, or the consumer. While many people argue the restaurants are to blame, it is ultimately the consumers who are to attribute to obesity.
Fast food and healthy food effects the American culture differently through convenience, cost, and health. There are many factors that determine what an individual consumes as fuel for the body. Most fast foods are direct opposites of healthy foods; sometimes healthy foods are not reality for that shift working mom of five kids. Planning meals ahead is very ideal, but is not always reality. Sometimes fast food is a life saver
Food has been known as an unavoidable component of life which makes it a basic necessity. There are two main types of foods:healthy food and fast food. Although they have some similarities ,there are a lot of differences between them. Healthy foods provoke energy and decrease the risk of so many diseases. On the contrary, fast foods are high in sugar and fat, which may lead to many health issues like heart and liver diseases. They both can be tasty and have several varieties to choose . On the other hand,there are two main differences between the two types. The first one is related to health . The second one is related to cost.