Fast Foods and the Increasing Cases of Obesity and Diabetes - Research Paper Example

Fast Foods and the Increasing Cases of Obesity and Diabetes Indeed, the world is at a sorry with respect to the health status of both children and adults. This is because there number of obesity cases and Type 2 diabetes have risen to an alarming level, and if nothing is done soon to avert the situation, it might become a pandemic. The author of Don’t Blame the Eater, David Zinczenko argues that the food industry contributes hugely to the problem of obesity especially in children. The author notes that, in 1994, the diabetes in children was only 5% accounted for by genetic factors, but currently the level of diabetes in children has risen to 30% accounted for by the calories that children consume from fast foods. He further argues that, on a typical day, an American kid takes 1,040 calories that are double the government’s daily recommended requirement, and it makes it worse this is accompanied by a super-sized coke with 450 calories. As such, he suggests that these fast food companies should be a warning with the adverts, and also include the amount of calories in their foods. I agree with Zinczenko that fast foods are responsible for the surging number of obesity and diabetes in children. However, I disagree that the lack of calorie labels and warnings by the companies are the major reasons why kids consume fast foods at a high rate. I believe that individuals have a responsibility to choose what is healthy and avoid what is not. Both parents and children have a responsibility to make the right choices regarding what is healthy and what is harmful. Including calorie information on the foods that people consume from the first food joints is not a solution as, many people will ignore this information, and some will never look at the information. Currently, even without passing a warning on their adverts, everybody in the society knows that consuming too much fast food is not healthy, but they still ignore this and go ahead, buy and consume these foods. Hence, saying that including a warning and calorie information will not deter people from consuming these foods. Though the author supports his arguments by giving a personal experience, which makes the article more credible, the biggest issue still stems down to personal responsibility. In an article titled It's Portion Distortion That Makes America Fat by Shannon Brownie, the author discusses a research carried out by a marketing whiz at Taco Bell. In the consumer-based market research, Elliot Bloom discovered that most of the frequent customers who accounted for 70% of sales were young males and teenagers who frequented the fast food joints as often as 20 times a month (Brownlee 1). Furthermore, Bloom found out that these young men did not have any interest in cooking and so the reason for frequenting the fast food joints. These people showed no concern for the nutritional value of the food, which screams out the lack of responsibility leading to excessive consumption of unhealthy foods. Shannon Brownie employs the use of empirical data and research evidence to present her point about fast foods and rising cases of obesity and diabetes in the society. This makes the information provided in this source reliable. Parents should be responsible for what their children eat. The argument for poor economic status and lack of time should not be an excuse to neglect their children, and drive them to first foods. In fact, eating healthy will help the family saves because the healthier alternatives are always cheap. In addition, the family will not only save on food, but also on medical bills by averting conditions brought by too much consumption of fast foods. Clearly, almost every parent is aware that fast foods are harmful in terms of health. As a result, no matter how busy they are, the health of their children should come first, and thus, they need to ensure that they prepare food for their children before getting down to their busy schedules. Moreover, making a fruit or vegetable salad, vegetable juices or shakes are quite simple and does not consume a lot of time. In addition, parents have a responsibility to teach their children to understand that health is more valuable than the pleasure of eating delicious food. Zinczenko claims that the reason why he started eating fast foods frequently is that his mother was very busy trying to work in order to pay the bills and the dad away after separation rebuilding his life (Zinczenko 2). In other words, there was no one to take care of his meals, as the mum was too busy. Being busy cannot be an excuse not to prepare a simple meal for one’s children. Parents should be more responsible and put their priorities in order so as not to drive their children into the consolation of fast foods. The government also shares the responsibility of ensuring that they promote health policies that would promote a sense of health responsibility in citizens. For instance, Radley Balko in an article Are You Responsible for Your Own Weight, suggests that the most effective way to eliminate health-threat of obesity is to scrap it from the jurisdiction of public health and make it private. Balko argues that if the matter becomes private people will be very careful f what they put in their bodies (Balko 1). Thus, the government should give citizens financial, moral, and personal responsibility such that the worries, concerns, and costs of being overweight are borne only by those who are obese or overweight. Further, Balko advises that people should take personal responsibility for their lifestyle and diet (Balko 1). In addition, people will be able to make better decisions if they bear the consequences of their choices rather than being borne by someone else. Radly Balko is a columnist with FoxNews.com and a policy analyst with the Cato Institute; thus, he has experience on social issues affecting the society making the information he presents reliable. Another source that can give an insight into the relationship between fast foods and rising cases of obesity in America is, Are Fast Foods Establishments Making Americans Fat? Todd Buschhloz, a former economic adviser in the administration of George H.W. Bush, is the author of this article. In addition, the article is published in the Policy Review, which means that it is scholarly since it must pass peer review before publication. Hence, the information in this article is credible and reliable. Buschhloz is of the opinion that people blame the fast food joints unfairly for rising rates of obesity in America. He believes the gain in weight that has become rampant in the society is due to people eating a lot at sit-down restaurants or snacking a lot. In addition, Buchholz points out that there are healthy fast food choices, but people choose to eat those that are high on fat (Buschhloz 1). Therefore, this takes us back to personal responsibility of making a choice to live a healthy lifestyle. For instance, people should avoid snacking a lot and eating in seat down restaurants frequently. Furthermore, if individuals want to avoid gain of weight then they should go for healthy fast foods, as opposed to those that are high on fat. Gone are the days when going to MacDonald was one in a month or once in a week treat. Eating in a fast food joint occasionally is not harmful to people’s health, but unlike the old days where people used to visit the joints as a treat, currently people stream into these joints almost on a daily basis. Hence, misplaced choices and decisions are the reasons for the increased rates of obesity and diabetes in the country. Therefore, Zinczenko’s argument that fast food companies’ failure to label the calories presents in their foods and warn people against health effects of these foods has no valid ground. Besides, there are several other unhealthy habits that American citizens engage in that promote chances of obesity and diabetes. For example, research carried out reveals that instead of eating bigger breakfast, lunches, or dinners, Americans are constantly nibbling and noshing (Critser 32). Thus, they majorly consume snacks and goodies, which also have high calorie contents. Furthermore, the Data compiled by The U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that people consume two to three times more snacks and goodies within the stores that they do at fast food joints. The connection of fast foods with the rising rates of diabetes and obesity in America has dominated the debate for a long time. According to Zinczenko, the fast food companies are majorly responsible for increased rates of obesity and diabetes especially in children. He believes that these companies fail to warn consumers through the adverts on the health effects of these fast foods. Furthermore, he notes that these companies fail to label the calorie content of these foods as a warning to the consumers. However, I disagree with Zinczenko’s opinion because the decision whether to eat fast food is the responsibility of an individual. Similarly, the government also has a role to promote personal, financial, and moral responsibility in individuals to help make better choices regarding their health and lifestyle. Moreover, other eating habits contribute to weight gain such as eating a lot of snacks and goodies frequently as opposed to a proper breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Works Cited Balko, Radly, Kelly Brownell and Marion Nestle. "Are You Responsible for Your Own Weight?" Time Magazine 7 June 2004. Web. Brownlee, Sannon. "It's Portion Distortion That Makes America Fat." Washinton Post 29 December 2002. Web. Buschhloz, Todd. "Are Fast Food Establishments Making Americans Fat? by Todd. Buschhloz." Policy Review (2006). Print. Critser, Greg. Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003. Print. Zinczenko, David. "Don't Blame the Eater." The New York Times 23 November 2002. Web. Read More