Fast Food in America

862 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: about Impact of fast food

Jean is a first time visitor to the United States. As he was getting dressed this morning, he became excited to try McDonald’s new “Egg White Delight McMuffin” that came on a television commercial. Upon opening the packaging he finds a soggy, rubbery sandwich unlike the juicy, wholesome sandwich he saw earlier this morning. He recognizes everybody else enjoying food that looks nothing how it should, and begins to wonder why.
America is a place where fast pace, convenience, and cheap products and services are accepted and even loved. As of April 20th, 2012, “in America, there were 160,000 fast food restaurants serving 50 million customers a day.” (“Fast Food Statistics”). It is the perfect alternative to snagging a delicious meal to avoid the burden of cooking dinner for one’s family. Although nutritional value and the quality of the food are in the back of American’s mind, it is not a large enough concern for people to unify, complain, and take action. Many studies show that fast food especially in large amounts can be harmful to the body. Behind the great tastes and bright lights of fast food, there are many facts and risks that are hidden from the American people.
Never mind the actual substance, mega fast food chains spend billions of dollars a year in advertising. Fast food is advertised in a manner where it is geared mostly toward children. CBS News reports, “Last year, children ages 6 to 11 saw 26 percent more ads for McDonald's than they did just two years earlier.” (Ben Tracy) Bright colors, catchy tunes, and the presentation of the perfect meal are advertising tactics used in commercials. Free toy giveaways for children, promises of the possibility to win a large lump of money, a free meal after a certain amount of purcha...

... middle of paper ...

...ue personally. From as small as boycotting the restaurants and encouraging others to do the same, to bringing lawsuits to these mega food chains. No matter the method, every voice counts and eventually America will be a healthier place to live.

Works Cited

"Fast Food Statistics." Statistic Brain RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2013.

"Frequent Fast Food Meals Increase Weight, Diabetes Risk, Study Says, December 30, 2004 Press Release - National Institutes of Health (NIH)." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 30 Dec. 2004. Web. 06 Dec. 2013.

MBD. "Hamburger Chef Jamie Oliver Proves McDonald’s Burgers “Unfit for Human Consumption”." Politicalblindspoot.com. 2013 Political Blind Spot, 3 Aug. 2013. Web. 6 Dec. 13.

Tracy, Ben. "Fast Food Restaurants Not Fighting Child Obesity." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 10 Nov. 2010. Web. 06 Dec. 2013.

Show More
Related

  • If You Pitch It They Will Eat Summary

    635 Words  | 2 Pages

    “The passive American consumer, sitting down to a meal of pre-prepared or fast food, confronts a platter covered with inert, anonymous substances that have been processed, dyed, breaded, sauced, gravied, ground, pulped, strained, blended, prettified, and sanitized beyond resemblance to any creature that every lived (Berry 9).” This a great example that makes that makes us learn and think about when we eat a fast food product and also what it contains. This should a reason for us to be thinkful of the food products that we consume on a daily basis, and so do our

    Read More

  • Obesity In Don T Blame The Eater By David Zinczenko

    1675 Words  | 4 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Fast Food: Oppression Through Poor Nutrition

    715 Words  | 2 Pages

    Obesity in the United States, which the media has labeled a national crisis, has also been connected to poverty rates. Big fast food industry’s target poor communities, and spend millions of dollars each year to create advertising that appeals to these specific areas. These industry’s also target naïve children when advertising because they know that eating habits developed in childhood are usually carried into adulthood. Children who are exposed to television advertisements for unhealthy food and who are not educated well enough on good nutrition will grow up and feed their families the same unhealthy foods they ate as kids. A big way fast food giants are able to make certain young people have access to unhealthy food is by strategically placing franchises in close proximity to schools. They will often place three times as many outlets within walking distance of schools than in areas where there are no schools nearby. The way fast food advertising is targeted towards children is very alarming considering how important good nutrition is for young people and how a child’s eating habits can affect their growth and

    Read More

  • Essay On Fast Food Nation

    830 Words  | 2 Pages

    (2012). Fast Food Advertising is linked to Rising Childhood and Teen Obesity. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Retrieved: April 24, 2014 from http://ic.galegroup.com.ezproxy1.lib.asu.edu/ic/ovic/ViewpointsDetailsPage/ViewpointsDetailsWindow?failOverType=&query=&prodId=OVIC&windowstate=normal&contentModules=&mode=view&displayGroupName=Viewpoints&limiter=&u=asuniv&currPage=&disableHighlighting=true&displayGroups=&sortBy=&source=&search_within_results=&p=OVIC&action=e&catId=&activityType=&scanId=&documentId=GALE%...

    Read More

  • obesity in u.s.

    1630 Words  | 4 Pages

    Obesity in America is directly due to the fast food industry. From the rising mortality’s among people who are obese from fast food. To even the preservatives fast food chains use within their food. Not only have that calorie’s people intake from these restaurants even been miss looked. While people may think they can overcome the urge, fast food chains exclusively use addictive’s in their products to hook people from day one of use. Healthy lifestyles among society have been misled by the very fast food chains, which state their “healthy”. With that said, emotional issues even come to play when involving a human’s appetite to fast food. Even beverages sold at these fast food chains exceed the normal limit of sugar a healthy being should consume. Even America’s view point on serving sizes of meals served at these fast food chains goes way beyond a healthy lifestyle that everyone wants.

    Read More

  • America's Food Problem

    1137 Words  | 3 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • Fast Food Nation Summary

    1394 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Dark Side of the All-American Meal, a work examining the country’s fast food industry (Gale). Schlosser sets off chapter 5: “Why the Fries Taste Good,” in Aberdeen,

    Read More

  • Fast Food Restaurants and the Decline of American's Health

    1943 Words  | 4 Pages

    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”

    Read More

  • Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal

    849 Words  | 2 Pages

    The icon that represents fast food culture for most people is McDonald's, though the fast food culture developed long before the creation of that restaurant chain. Schlosser considers the impact of such fast-food chains but also considers the primacy of the hamburger in the American diet and some of the dangers it poses. McDonald?s reliance on hamburger is a questionable item for a steady diet in a more health conscious age, and interferes w...

    Read More

  • Childhood Obesity: Fast Food Companies Are To Blame

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    Focusing on the well being of the customers should be the main focus of any major company, especially fast food companies. By reducing the amount of unhealthy choices for children and replacing them with nutritional foods, the nation’s youth will benefit.

    Read More

  • Fast Food Is Killing America

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many people all around the world and especially in the United States are paying money to poison their own bodies. Fast food is a major problem in the United States. Many people are attracted to fast food restaurants because of their low prices, but fast food is the cause of many health issues and is the main reason for the growing population of obese individuals in America. Although fast food can be a good option for a quick and cheap meal, fast food is very bad for the human body because it is full of questionable ingredients and can cause obesity, heart disease and raise cholesterol.

    Read More

  • Fast Food Restaurants and Obesity Rates in America

    985 Words  | 2 Pages

    Currie, DellaVigna, Morreti & Pathania in 2009, conducted another study with different parameters that has underlined a casual correlation between the availability of fast food restaurants and obesity rates , whereby children located within short distance from a fast food restaurant has increased likelihood of being obese. Alongside the enterprising and aggressive marketing tactics and advertising that has been used by large fast food corporations, the fast food consumption amongst children and young adults have increased(Long, 2014). This growing intake of fast food has created a larger demand for fast food products, as well as a larger market as each person consumes more fast food, encouraging entrepreneurs to open more chains in that location. This phenomenon is a worrying dat...

    Read More

  • Fast Food: A Revolutionary Force In American Society

    734 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nevertheless, some people insist that fast foods, such as chips, hamburgers and fizzy drinks, that are so cheap and tasty, are not a consequence of the health problems. However, I strongly disagree that fast food has no bad impact on people’s health. I believe that fast food has a negative impact on society and, therefore, people must take care of themselves and lead a healthy lifestyle if they do not want to face serious problems with their

    Read More

  • Obesity and Fast Food

    1260 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ritzer, George. The McDonaldization of Society. Revised New Century Edition. California: Pine Forge Press, 2004.

    Read More

  • Market Research Implementation: McDonalds

    1309 Words  | 3 Pages

    When researching McDonald’s through online sources, it is clear that nutrition is a major concern of the public visiting the fast-food chain. Secondary research conducted shows that there are several case studies and other secondary source searches around the same topic. McDonald’s has often been the center of nutritional attention within the fast-food industry. Secondary research shows that the restaurant has recently made changes to the American Happy Meal to reduce the amount of French fries offered and replace the portion with fruit (Strom, 2011). In a study conducted by McDonald’s a secondary source reports the meal cuts calories by 20% for the children’s meal (Strom, 2011). This is a critical move by the organization on children’s obesity is currently a hot topic within food chains and attention is driven by the Obama administration. Secondary research also shows that although the public has major health concerns with the food chain, profits are increasing during a high point of an economic recession (Dahan & Gittens, 2008). Acco...

    Read More

More about Fast Food in America

Open Document