You Can't Blame The Eater in America Let's face it: the ubiquity of fast food has become one of the defining characteristics of America in the 21st century, one that values convenience and accessibility. In almost every zip code, the fast food industry has a strong foothold on diets, both domestic and abroad. This strong and originally American industry has increased its influence on the world's diet and impacted societies. However, fast food goliaths such as McDonald's and Burger King have come to be associated with health risks including, but not limited to, obesity, diabetes, and other ailments. Its omnipresence in society and in media both contribute to the spike in the these cases. David Zinczenko, former Editor-in-Chief of Men's Health magazine, weighs in on this topic in 2002 and offers his take on who should be responsible for this national health crisis. In his op-ed, "Don't Blame the Eater," …show more content…
This national health epidemic, Zinczenko argues, should be an important issue to his readers since he has first-hand knowledge of the subject matter, making himself a credible source.
Zinczenko first identifies himself as a former consumer of fast food, proving himself as someone with first-hand experience to fast food's effect on the body. By way of appearing as someone who deeply understands this issue, Zinczenko notes that he "tends to sympathize with these portly fast food patrons, though. That's because I used to be one of them" (462). Zinczenko, currently the author of a diet-based book, offers the surprising fact that he once consumed the products that he now warns against, a shocking concession made to draw the reader into the rest of his article. He more importantly establishes himself as a former foodie, meaning he understands both the ends of the spectrums of this discussion. On
He begins by saying that while it may seem easy to avoid fast food and eat relatively balanced meals, it is easier to fall victim to than you may assume, based on life circumstances. His mother, for example, had custody of him after his parent’s divorce and was too busy working to provide for him to have time to shop for and prepare healthy meals. “Advertisements don 't carry warning labels the way tobacco ads do. Prepared foods aren 't covered under Food and Drug Administration labeling laws. Some fast-food purveyors will provide calorie information on request, but even that can be hard to understand.” is an example Zinczenko gives that even though consumers often times know fast food is bad for your body, but not to the full magnitude. These companies find loopholes to justify projecting calorie/content information that is either insufficient or perplexing enough that you would be forced to go to great lengths to uncover exactly how many calories are actually in your meal. Another one of his main points is the lack of alternative options. With a McDonalds on every corner and a busy schedule, it is almost inevitable to choose a drive thru burger rather than going into a grocery store to buy something you then later have to go through the trouble of preparing, especially for
Before that, Zinczenko was editor-in-chief of Men’s Health magazine as well as editorial director of Women’s Health magazine. He was able express his information about how there isn 't enough alternatives to lower the amount of citizens in the U.S that have diabetes and obesity. This is a portion from his essay that displays what he was trying to accomplish. Complicating the lack of alternatives is the lack of information about what, exactly, we 're consuming. There are no calorie information charts on fast-food packaging, the way there are on grocery items. Advertisements don 't carry warning labels the way tobacco ads do. With this Zinczenko was able to attract the readers attention and point to them a realization that gets the audience to look back and think about the last time they go to a fast food place and they don’t see any chart of the
As for David Zinczenko, he grew up on the infamous fast food diet that once saved his life when hunger struck due to the affordable prices restaurants had to offer. “Lunch and dinner, for me, was a daily choice between McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken or Pizza Hut” (Zinczenko 462). These unhealthy habits eventually caught up to him and resulted in an unflattering weight gain. Fortunately, he went to college, connected with the Navy Reserves and also became associated with a health magazine in which he learned how to manage his diet. He didn’t stop there; in fact, he is president of Galvanized Brands, a global health and wellness media company and he is also the author of multiple books: Eat This, Not That and the Abs Diet series. The most remarkable part, he was able to recover and become healthy again unlike many others who have gone too far to make a comeback, therefore, becoming obese. In “Don’t Blame the Eater”, Zinczenko talks to those who are consuming the
“Don’t Blame the Eater” is an article by David Zinczenko that explains to Americans, specifically overweight young Americans, about the risks eating at fast food restaurants and its cause of affecting one’s health. In his article, he tries to address the issue about America’s food industries by using literal devices such as tone, logos, ethos, diction, and organization in order to spread his message. He begins his article by addressing the topic and as he continues writing, he supports his topic by writing about personal experience and moves onto the reasons why his topic in a serious issue. Although he shows an overall clear progress, he does tend to have a few problems with his writing that could be improved.
The book begins with the question of “What should we have for dinner?” and stands to answer that question the rest of the way. Speaking directly of Americans, Pollan explains in-depth how the Nation tends to jump from fad to fad, first being afraid of carbohydrates, and then switching to fats, and so on. He goes on to explain where this thought process might have come from with the history of the Carter administration in 1977, as dietary goals were issued and the red meat lovers of America were warned to cut back. From that time on it has been an ever-changing lipo-, carbo-, phobia, with a cycle of weight loss and gain. With this question at hand, Michael Pollan begins to dive de...
In American, has an obesity epidemic that is growing year after year. According to the CDC more than one third 34.9% or 78.6 million U.S adults are obese and it continues grow. In the FDA recorders people that are obese usually have type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, asthma, heartburn and other digestive and mental health problems. The author David Zinczenko, the author of the article “Don’t blame the eater” thinks that fast food restaurants does not have alternative foods and not labeling their food products. Then there is Radley Balko the author of the article “What you eat is Your Business” believes that law makers should allow insurance companies to charge higher premium on obese people for their unhealthy eating habits. After reading both article, I disagree with Zinczenko idea of fast food restaurants not having fast food alternatives because fast food chains do have other alternative and they also label their food products
Zinczenko’s argument summed up is that fast food restaurants are to blame for America’s obesity issues. He gives statistics that go over childhood obesity and Type 2 diabetes, diabetes cost of health care in the United States, and the number of McDonalds restaurants in the United states. The only thing that Zinczenko suggests to change is that he wants all fast food restaurants to post nutritional information, and he
Zinczenko argues that it is not the consumers fault for putting themselves at risk of becoming obese or raising the chance of getting diabetes, but it is the fast-food companies fault for the lack of labeling their products with the nutritional information. While Balko argues that we as individuals should be held completely responsibly on whether or not one is choosing to put oneself at risk for obesity or type 2 diabetes. One should attain the consequences if the consumer chooses to drive to their preferred fast-food chain restaurant and place and order for an unhealthy meal. Likewise goes for the other way around, either way there are consequences for both, whether they be beneficial or not
In the article " Don't Blame The Eater" By David ZincZenco he expresses his bad eating habits growing up as an American child. David explains how his mother worked extended hours at her job , and didn't have the time to prepare home cooked meals.In consequence to eating bad foods David resulted torpid and obese at the age of fifteen. David blames the little knowledge he had on the health effects caused by fast food; if he knew better ; he would of made wiser choices. Today in America the epidemic of obesity has increased dramatically due to bad eating habits .One of the results in cosequence to those who follows an unhealthy diet high in sugar and fat ;has been the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes . Unfortinitely, type 2 diabetes has increased by 30 percent in children suffering from obesity, and not to mention the medical costs to treat diabetes has increased to 100 billion a year . However, such deseases can be cured if fast food restaurants stated the health risks involved if such foods are consumed just like the tabacco company states the health risk involved when smoking.If David had known then the damage he was causing to his body he wouldn't have risked his health by eating bad food at such a
Best selling author of Eat This, Not That, David Zinczenko’s article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” blames the fast food industry for the growing rate of obesity in the United States. Zinczenko’s main idea is that fast food companies should have warning labels on all the food they supply. Zinczenko believes that since health labels are put on tobacco and preserved food product, fast food industries should put labels on today’s fast food. Discussions about the availability of fast food compared to healthier alternative were brought up as well. Zinczenko states that when looked at, a salad from a fast food restaurant could add up to half of someone’s daily calories (155). He believes that because of fast food, Americans are having more health risks, which includes an insane rise in diabetes. Some agree with Zinczenko saying fast food companies should be the ones responsible to show people the truth about their foods. On the other hand Radley Balko, a columnist for FoxNews.com, states that fast-food consumption ...
Jennifer Rotz Professor Killingsworth English 101 5 October 2015 The War on Food Poverty In David Zinczenko’s “Don’t Blame The Eater”, he writes about a vulnerable behemoth in the form of the fast food industry, correlating an increase in obesity and Type II diabetes with a skyrocketing increase in health care costs. As these costs increase, we are left to wonder where public responsibility ends and personal responsibility begins. Who is really to blame when a person is so addicted to eating at McDonald’s that they file a lawsuit against the food giant, claiming that fast food caused their obesity?
However, when creating fast food restaurants, the industries were not thinking about the negative effects such as obesity. Other than obesity, other harmful effects exist as well. Fast food restaurants serve unhealthy products such as greasy foods and artificial meat that lead to dietary health issues in many adults and children. A recent study showed that “Young children who are fed processed, nutrient-poor foods are likely to become unhealthy teenagers, and eventually unhealthy adults. Now twenty-three percent of teens in the U.S. are pre-diabetic or diabetic, 22% have high or borderline high LDL cholesterol levels, and 14% have hypertension or prehypertension”
Many people in America love to get greasy, high calorie fast food from many places such as McDonalds and its competitors, but in the article “Don’t Blame the Eater” by David Zinczenko, he reveals the health problems associated with these fatty, salty meals. His articles are affective with its well organized layout, rhetorical appeals and tone which give it a very convincing argument. As you read through the article the author reveals the underlying problems with eating fast food and how there are no warnings of such problems posted. As a former obese child who grew up to diet and watch what he ate he sets a credible stance for the argument.
We are facing a big problem that will make our life more miserable. We are eating junk food constantly that is bad for our health. Many people eat junk food because they think it’s cheap and faster or some people do not like to cook their own food. “Don’t Blame the Eater” by David Zinczenko. This article is talking about how fast food is making us eat bad because of their fast service and cheap prices. People tends to choose fast food instead of cooking a healthy meal. It is easy for teenagers to gain weight by eating fast food meals. Zinczenko also argues about the absence of nutrition information about the food. I agree with Zinczenko. However, Zinczenko could also have examined the issue of fast food advertisements, mention some benefits
The story, In Praise of Fast Food, written by Rachel Laudan is an evaluation argument recommending healthy food choices in comparison to fast food. Laudan responds by sharing her experience with growing up on a farm and a child and eating food from her family garden. “Modern, fast, processed food is a disaster” (Faigley 302). In this writing selection, the author provided effective evidence to argue the inadequate safety of food today saying, “They built granaries, dried their meat and their fruit, salted and smoked their fish, curdled and fermented their dairy products, and cheerfully used additives and preservatives- sugar, salt, oil, vinegar, lye- to make audible foodstuffs” (Faigley 304). Food in the past was very different than what we have today.