Teenagers are growing socially and physically and the decisions they make throughout these years influence their current and future health (Marlow). The decision to feast at fast food restaurants is an unhealthy preference which leads to a mixture of health problems. Teenagers desire instant gratification and quickly become overfed and under nourished at fast food restaurants. (Ram). “It’s extremely difficult to eat in a healthy way at a fast-food restaurant. Despite some of their recent healthful offerings, the menus still tend to include foods high in salt, sugar and calories and low in fiber and nutrients,” said Mark Pereira, Ph.D., assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Minnesota (Cornforth).
First, fast foods are unhealthy because they include too much salt; the Consensus Action of Salt Health conducted a study which established that many of the items on the menus at Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald’s, Burger King, and Pizza Hut contained four times the daily recommended amount of salt for children and two times the daily recommended amount of salt for adults. Surplus salt can raise the blood pressure causing a stroke or heart attack and causes water retention (Ram).
Another reason fast foods are unhealthy are they contain too many calories (Ram) correlated to the rate of overweight and obese teenagers increasing at an distressing rate; fast food is considered to be the major causative feature. In 1976, 5% of the 12-19 year olds were considered obese, this increased to 18.1% by 2008. About 35% of the teenagers report consuming fast food six or more times per week. The American society has become an environment that promotes obesity by promoting increased food intake, unhealthy foods and a sede...
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Neale, Todd. “Teens Notice but Ignore Fast-Food Calorie Info.” MedPage Today. 17 February 2011, Web. 18 February, 2011.
Ram, Nanditha. “Fast Food is an Unhealthy Option for Growing Children and Teenagers.” Natural News, 9 February, 2009, Web. 19 February.
“Teens Ignore Nutrition Info on Fast Food Labels.” Science Daily. 16 February 2011, Web. 18 February 2011.
Williams, Laura. “Fast Food Label Fable.” 16 February 2011, Web. 18 February 2011.
The American diet has changed dramatically in the past couple centuries and so has the restaurant industry. The result of this change in Americans actions and diets is a rising obesity rate among children. In the 1970s, the childhood obesity rate was five percent of children (2-19 years old). The obesity rates doubled in the 1980s and by 2008 16.9% of children were obese (Grossklavs and Marvlesin). The percentage of obese children has more than tripled in the last 40 years. The growing epidemic is dangerous and alarming. There are many factors that contribute to the dramatic rise of obesity children. As obesity has grown, so has the fast food industry. “Between 1977 and 1995, the percentage of meals and snacks eaten at fast food restaurants doubled,” (...
Throughout the United States many American’s go through and eat at fast food places such as, McDonalds, Burger King, and Jack ‘n the Box. Mainly unaware of the amount of weight one can gain if consuming it on a daily bases or even two times week, can cause health issues, diabetes and possibly obesity. This was the main premise for writer Dave Zinczenko essay Don’t Blame the Eater, who makes an argument that many people are becoming obese and diabetic because of the fast food they eat. He asks a regarding his concern; Shouldn 't we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast-food restaurants?, As a way to engage the general public, like parents and teenagers, he expresses his argument through his own experience when he was a teenager eating at fast food places and information on the fast food industry in regards to how many calories are in the food.
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 the article, “Don’t Blame the Eater,” David Zinczenko discusses the damaging effects of fast-food restaurants on the young population. He uses factual evidence about the increase in Type 2 diabetes rates in children and adolescents who are obese. Zinczenko provides a refreshing and unique standpoint on the issue; most people blame consumers for choosing to eat fast food. He explains that it is not the fault of people for eating fast food, but it is the responsibility of fast-food restaurants to provide healthy alternatives and accurate nutrition information.
French, S. A., M. Story, D. Neumark-Sztainer, J. A. Fulkerson, and P. Hannan. "Fast Food Restaurant Use among Adolescents: Associations with Nutrient Intake, Food Choices and Behavioral and Psychosocial Variables." Europe Pubmed Central 25.12 (2001): 1823-833. Web. 4 Dec. 2013. .
Teenagers often stress on foods, what nutrition to take in, on what to eat, or what’s easy. While you may say, “Oh, fast food restaurants are very easy and quick!” A healthier solution would be to make a quick snack at home using healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and grains. “That should make up ¾ of every meal. These are also your dietary staples” (Jensen). Now while those ar...
It is no question to anyone that fast food is a major factor in the obesity epidemic that is currently sweeping through America. However, the question as to who is truly to blame – the servers or the consumers – remains relatively unanswered. If you ask David Zinczenko, author of the article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” the answer is clear. The blame of teen and childhood obesity belongs to the fast food industry. The industry takes advantage of young people with no other way to feed themselves, and fails to provide adequate nutrition facts to tell people exactly how much calories they are taking in. Children and teenagers with working or single parents are presented with an easy alternative to preparing their own meals, and parents don’t have to worry about the kid burning down the house trying to make themselves dinner while the parents are at work.
Since Americans typically live hectic lifestyles, fast food is a quick and easy way to grab a meal on the go. However, eating fast food frequently provides the body with high amounts of calories, sugars, saturated and trans fats, while lacking in vitamins and minerals. Overtime, eating fast food can take a toll on ones body and increase the risk of developing illnesses and diseases. These diseases include heart disease; type 2 diabetes, stroke, and cancer, breathing problems, arthritis and even reproductive complications.
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...
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”
Since the fast food industry is targeting America’s youth, providing healthier options on children’s menus will reduce the rate of childhood obesity and allow for a healthy future.
Obesity is a big social issue in America. Due to the popularity of fast food and other unhealthy foods, more and more Americans are developing health diseases and disorders. We should be getting the correct daily nutrition amount, but because of our fast paced lifestyles we sometimes do not have enough time. Fast food restaurants make it possible to grab a meal and go. We often do not pay attention to the nutrition amount, but are simply looking for a quick bite to eat that will fulfill our hunger. Fast food is assisting in the increase of obesity in America (“Phrase” par.2).
The impact on children and adolescents that derive from the fast food industry raise questions in the details of the nation of fast food. The health of these people is the biggest concern among the issues that have raised questions from adults and health officials around the world and how later on the way these kids are eatin...
According to some of my friends, their parents buy more unprocessed and local foods rather than the usual processed foods (Mei, Murray). There could also be children, or teens, whose parents simply don’t allow them to eat at a fast-food restaurant quite often. Unfortunately, according to the table below McDonald’s seems to be the fast-food chain restaurant that is targeting the youth the most (see table 1). Nowadays, many parents tend to take their kids to a fast-food restaurant simply because it’s easier and faster to order food then it is to cook an entire meal (Murray). Not only is eating out, or at least take out, efficient, but it’s also less stressful on the parents. Children can tend to be very picky eaters, well most of them at least. My younger cousin for one refuses to eat anything green, unless it’s a cucumber. As we progress more and more into our culture of industrialized eating, we need to consider what we are risking in the long run. There’s actually many different things that not only college students but the entire population could do to help reduce our risks in the long run. For one, it would be to stop eating so frequently at these fast-food restaurants. I know many of my peers, who I went to high school with, would often go to McDonald’s for breakfast before school started. Fortunately, at Denison, it’s not that common for us to go to McDonald’s for breakfast; probably because the closest one is in the next town
There are many health issues and concerns for teenagers. Many health issues are related to illegal substances but everyday food is just as big of a danger. Obesity is sweeping the nation and its due to all of the amount of junk food, fast food, and sweets that are promoted and sold every day. In the United States the number of teenagers that are obese is increasing rapidly. 18% of teen from ages 12 to 19 are obese. That is tripling teen obesity in 1980. 30% of kids from ages 6 to 19 years old are obese. These statistics show a huge problem and it is growing faster than ever.