In a society that functions at a high speed, fast food has quickly been adopted as the preferred food of choice. Fast food restaurants and their advertisements are permeating our neighborhoods, schools, television, and culture. Burger King and Big Mac burgers have become defining foods of the typical American diet. Corporate goals aim to make these chains more geographically accessible, adding more and more chains to our neighborhood streets. McDonald’s and Burger King are not the only fast food industries invading our communities, our minds, and our stomachs; Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken are just a few others. These industries are successful because they offer consumers a quick, cheap, convenient and tasty meal that is all …show more content…
Salt consumption is associated with high blood pressure, strokes, and kidney function. In addition, some studies have shown that calcium competes with sodium. In other words, as the intake of sodium increases, there is an increase in the urinary excretion of calcium. This increased excretion of calcium may be responsible for reduced peak bone mass and increased bone demineralization which, in turn, increases the risk for osteoporosis and bone fractures among women. This concept is extremely important when thinking in terms of children who are in the critical stage of developing bone density. The recommended limit for sodium is 2,200 mg. On average, however, women consume 3,200 mg per day. Exceeding these recommendations is often easy since a Burger King Whopper contains 870 mg of sodium and a large order of McDonald’s fries contains 290 mg, making it possible for individuals to reach more than half the limit in one meal. On the other hand, the RDA for calcium is 800 mg per day but the average intake among women is less than 600 mg. This information illustrates the need for healthy food alternatives. …show more content…
Since many food patterns begin during childhood, parents and teachers should avoid using fast foods as rewarding meals and attempt to educate children on healthy food choices. Super-sizing meals to get more for your dollar may contribute to unnecessary calories and fat. Encouraging the consumption of a balanced diet, high in complex carbohydrates such as legumes, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains may result in many health benefits. In addition, promoting a diet rich in calcium, which is found in dairy sources such as low-fat milk and cheese or in other sources such as broccoli or kale promotes peak bone mass and decreased risk for osteoporosis and bone fractures later in life. In general, a diet low in fat, especially saturated fat, low in salt and high in fiber and calcium can prevent obesity and disease. Advocating nutrient dense diets, rich in whole grains, fresh fruits, and vegetables and increased physical activity may serve as the greatest investment of society, the health of our youth. Parents and teachers can educate and empower children by involving them in creating simple, fun, and creative homemade alternatives. Teaching children skills such as
In today’s society Americans want everything quick and cheap, so the question stands what is a quick lunch and what is available for an economical price? Americans live in a world that surrounds us with fast food restaurants. Two of the most well known restaurants for fast food restaurants is McDonald 's and Checkers. Far from what we imagined, McDonald 's and Checkers have huge differences. Most people perceive them just as the same fast food restaurant with different names. For this reason, they create debates on which one of them is the superior restaurant and which one is the more economical price. Though neither of these companies provides the healthiest foods for Americans the question stands, which one is for lunch today? Even though,
Now, when considering whether one wants to prevent or treat Osteoporosis, it does not mean cutting yourself off from foods with small portions or extreme dieting. It is a common misconception that when a person wants to be healthy they must eat in smaller portions, and while this does have some truth, one must consider when it comes to eating healthy, it means to eat healthy by adding nutritious portions of fruits, vegetables, protein, carbs, and of course, calcium intake for the bones in one’s diet. Also, one must not deprive themselves of having a “cheat day” once a week with chips and candy. But it is a good start to begin adding calcium to fortified foods and supplements, such as milk. People should at least aim for 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams a day of calcium.
Another critical nutrient for healthy bones is magnesium, which helps peoples’ bodies absorb calcium, neutralize metabolic acids, and support a robust bone structure. A body that is growing needs the support of magnesium when it comes to treating osteoporosis. Magnesium can help with the constipating effect that calcium has, when taking it with calcium supplements (Bauer 1). Beans, sweet potatoes, beans, cashews, spinach, and brown rice give a lot of magnesium.
Fast food restaurants such as Burger King and McDonald’s, create advertisements where it urges people to consume their product. For example Mcdonald’s created a product where you can get two items such as a mcdouble and a medium fries for three dollars. According to “The battle against fast food begins at home”, by Daniel Weintraub, it shows how companies are intriguing their customers. “ The center blames the problem on the increasing consumption of fast food and soft drinks, larger portion sizes in restaurants and the amount of available on school campuses”(1).For the most part, the Center for Public Health believes that fast food companies are the problem for health
The New York Times bestseller Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is one of the most riveting books to come out about fast food restaurants to date (Schlosser, 2004). Fast food consumption has become a way of life for many in the United States as well as many other countries in the world. The author Eric Schlosser an investigative reporter whose impeccable researching and bold interviewing captures the true essence of the immense impact that fast food restaurants are having in America (2004). Beginning with McDonald’s, the first fast food restaurant, which opened on April 15, 1955 in Des Plaines, Illinois to current trends of making fast food a global realization McDonald’s has paved the way for many fast food restaurants following the same basic ideal that is tasty foods served fast at a minimal cost (2011). Schlosser explains how fast food restaurants have gained substantial market share of the consumers; he also shows that by marketing to children and offering less unhealthful fare, that are purchased from mega-companies which are often camouflaged with added ingredients and cooked unhealthful ways, that these companies are indeed causing irreparable harm to our country (2004).
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001. Print.
Saturated fat and cholesterol and an increased risk of heart disease. Fiber and a reduced risk of cancer. Fruit, vegetables and grain products that contain fiber and a reduced risk of heart disease.
middle of paper ... ... Dairy products are a rich source of calcium and Vitamin D. Maintaining adequate calcium stores may prevent me from contracting osteoporosis as I age.
The obesity epidemic is a very severe problem that is especially serious in our nation’s children, and the government is taking several steps with the aim to fix that. 2010’s Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act aims to allow kids to get balanced, nutritious, yummy school meals as well as exercise that will reduce childhood obesity and other related health issues (Watanabe). While these new laws were set with nothing but good intentions, there is still quite a lot that doesn’t exactly match the lawmakers’ original intentions for the laws’ outcomes. Regulation adjustments called for many changes to the menu offerings along with other alterations, none of which came without a cost to the schools and students.
Ask a teenager what their favorite fast food restaurant is and most of them will probably say McDonalds. "McDonalds operates approx. 30,000 restaurants on 6 continents, and feeds about 46 million people in a single day! In the U.S. alone, McDonalds accounts for 43% of the fast food market." Manhattan alone contains 82 restaurants packed into the island (Super Size Me). McDonalds has been criticized by the media and other people for offering too many unhealthy choices on their menu, therefore leading to obesity in America. Eating too much McDonalds, or any other fatty food, will give you many long term health problems.
Remember how happy you were when your parents bought you a happy meal as a child. It came in that cool little red box with some fries and chicken nuggets. Oh, and best of all it always came with a toy; your parents would tell you not to open it until you finished your food but that never happened. Or the time you forgot money at home but still managed to scrap up a dollar and sixteen cents from your car for an iced sweet tea. Fast food always comes in the clutch, but what is really behind the happy meals and sweet teas. We all know fast food is not good for you, but who’s to blame. Is it fair that we blame fast-food chains or are we just to afraid to blame ourselves?
Calcium is a mineral found in many foods that the human body cannot produce itself (National Osteoporosis Foundation). According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation it is used in the regulation of heartbeat, stimulation of hormone secretions, conduction of nerve impulses, stimulation of blood clotting, and maintenance of a healthy skeleton. They also state that we lose calcium every day through shed skin, nails, hair, sweat, and other bodily functions. Bones are also constantly being “remodeled” by removal of older pieces of bone and replacement with new bone. These losses make a daily source of calcium invaluable. Calcium has traditionally been thought of in conjunction to milk, but this connection is slowly being broken.
... that sodium ingestion (especially high contents) passes through extracellular compartments including the vascular system before getting eliminated by the kidneys. An acute increase of plasma sodium concentration can alter the mechanical properties of vascular endothelium, as long as aldosterone is present. Aldosterone not only plays a major role in adjusting sodium and potassium transport in kidneys but also on the cardiovascular system. Sodium accumulates in extracellular space when the kidneys cannot adequately adjust salt excretion to salt uptake and/or when the concentration of aldosterone is raised, leading to an increase in plasma sodium concentration. An important finding in these studies was the observed effects of amiloride, which acted to block sodium channels and prevented an increase in stiffness by reversing the increasing in cell volume and pressure.
...ng sugar and fats. The junk food companies know this, but they don’t care, because it makes them rich. In summary, this is why by law, all fast-food companies should have forced limitations on distribution which has lead to the rise of obesity in America.