Eric Schlossers Fast Food Nation - Book Report/Review Example

Eric Schlossers “Fast Food Nation” In Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser argues that fast food has become extremely popular among American citizen of all ages, social classes, and ethnic background. Americans are heavy consumers of fast food, on which they spend more money than they do "on higher education, personal computers, software or new cars. They spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos and recorded music – combined”(Schlosser). As a result, in this book, Schlosser exposes many of the negative phenomena that are associated with fast food, trying to recommend some possible approaches to deal with such negative phenomena. In the introduction of the book, Schlosser introduces the thesis of the whole book, which revolves around the issue of fast food and the draw-back of this growing industry in the United States. Historically, fast food appeared in the United States as a reflection of the rapid rhythm of life. With the triumph of materialism and industrialization in the country, people’s lives have become too intense to find enough time to eat well-cooked healthy meals at homes or in restaurants. To visualize the degree to which fast food has spread in the culture of the United States, Schlosser uses the symbol of Cheyenne Mountain, which "sits on the eastern slope of Colorados Front Range." The importance of this mountain lies in the fact that it is a site "for a top-secret, underground combat operations center." The astonishing observation that the author makes here is that the employees in this highly sensitive place regularly order meals from nearby famous fast food chains. Schlosser mentions this example to convey the message that the culture of fast food consumerism is widely spread and deeply rooted in all the classes and sectors of the American society. This message is conveyed clearly when Schlosser states that “Americans now spend more money on fast food than they do on higher education, personal computers, software or new cars. They spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos and recorded music – combined” Thus, fast food has become a unique aspect of the American life style. Whether in theatres, parks, classrooms, or streets, a considerable number of Americans are found holding a burger sandwich in one hand and a huge cup of coke in the other. This reflects the fact that “fast food is considered to be an essential part of the American national culture. It is contemplated as a part of sense of national identity” (“Fast Food Culture is Expanding Worldwide”). The harsh competition among fast food companies in the United States pushes them to use advertising heavily in order to attract more and more customers. Although fast food advertising is directed to all kinds of people, kids are specially targeted in order to promote this kind of food among them. As kids and young children are still inexperienced, they can be easily affected by what they watch on TV, and thats why fast food advertising attracts more and more children in the US. In that sense, children are actually most vulnerable to the negative effects of consumerism. Accordingly, children are turned into heavy consumers since their early ages due to the role of advertising. For example, various kinds of food are advertised for kids, inducing them to eat certain kinds of food and sweets that may be detrimental for their health. Not satisfied by radio, TV, and magazine ads, many fast food companies decided to reach children and kids at their schools by putting ads on playground walls and school buses. This practice is criticized harshly by Schlosser, who thinks that it is unethical to harass kids with this kind of unhealthy food at their young ages. Everywhere in television and print media, kids are surrounded by a great number of ads that aim at convincing them to use certain kinds of products and services or eat certain kind of food. In that sense, ads are tools that deepen the spirit of consumerism among Americans, since young age. TV ads, for example, use all modern approaches to push the audience to consume more and more products. In this context, the main role of the American government and Not-for-Profit organizations is to adequately inform people about the possible threat of junk food on health. As the ads that promote junk food are spread everywhere, so, the counter ads that warn people about the destructive effects of this kind of food should also be available for all audiences. Government authorities should design ad campaigns to inform its citizens about the real threat of junk food, its nutritional components, and threat on lives. Furthermore, in the third section of his book, Schlosser tackles an extremely important factor in the fast food industry; namely, the process of slaughtering and processing meat for food. He gives a detailed description of slaughterhouses, the employees who work there, and the mechanism of processing meat. The author argues that the employees in slaughterhouses work under very bad conditions, which may be hazardous both for them and for the meat eaters. Because those who work in slaughterhouses face very hard conditions, live a hazardous life, and earn minimum wages, many slaughterhouse owners prefer to hire illegal immigrants, who are mostly not covered by health insurances. Thus, illegal immigration is the real threat of the spread of deadly diseases in the United States. This is due primarily to the fact that most illegal immigrants do not have health insurance. Steven A. Camarota asserts that "one-third of immigrants do not have health insurance — two and one-half times the rate for natives" (Camarota). In addition, the increasing emphasis on meat in food diets pushes slaughterhouse owners to use illegal and unethical measures to increase meat production. Accordingly, the spread of the culture of consumerism leads to the suffering of animals. As the demand on meat-based diet, there is high probability that more slaughterhouse owners will resort to unethical approaches in order to increase their meat production. Similarly, the whole environment is seriously affected by the spread of the culture of consumerism in societies. Therefore, the author argues that OSHA should have a more influential role in this concern by closely inspecting the kind of work done in these slaughterhouses. One approach to minimize the hazards found in these places is that the slaughterhouses who hire illegal immigrants should be punished by law to pay large fines. In fact, there are many slaughterhouse owners in the United States preferring to hire illegal immigrants because those illegal immigrants take low wages. Moreover, the author analyzes the approaches used by fast food companies to make their food tasty and appealing for customers. Actually, the spread of this kind of food is caused by many factors, including its good taste, and ease with which one can reach any of these fast food chains anywhere. One of the techniques used by fast food chains is the use of artificial flavors and other ingredients that give the food a good taste and a nice smell. However, the problem is that most of these artificial flavors have dangerous effects on health. Science and experiment show that junk food is extremely unhealthy as it has dangerous artificial flavors and low nutritional values and high levels of fat. Most independent studies that are conducted around the world to test the effect of junk food on health concluded that this kind of food may cause serious health problems due to its flavors and unhealthy nutritional components. For instance, most kinds of fast food contain high ratio of fat which causes obesity that is life-threatening. In their article that is entitled "Why Junk Food is so Tempting, And How to Beat Your Temptation," Dr. Joseph Mercola and Dr. Rachael Droege refer to the important fact that "an estimated 300,000 Americans die each year from fat-related causes." Among the serious health problems caused by obesity and other fat-related problems is the high blood pressure and heart attacks. Since junk food contains extremely high levels of fat, those who heavily eat this kind of food will be categorized as high risk in regard to fat-related diseases. Thats because the eaters of this kind of food will gain weight easily and the fat levels in their bodies will increase to a level that would threaten their lives. Therefore, it can be said that both the natural and artificial ingredients of most fast food have dangerous effects on peoples health. Going deeper in the issue of fast food, the author extends his argument about the dangerous effects of fast food on health. He states that the way meat is processed and treated before cooking may make it a suitable place for dangerous bacteria, which is extremely hazardous for people, especially kids. In that sense, the author argues that the way meat is cooked in the fast food restaurants may not lead to the full killing of the dangerous bacteria in poultry, meat, and eggs. He argues that some kinds of bacteria can survive on raw meat from infected poultry. It is also unsafe to eat undercooked meat, poultry or consume raw eggs. To support his argument, Schlosser cites many statistics and cases, in which adults and children got dangerous diseases that are discovered to be the effect of bacteria in processed meat. For instance, an unusual numbers of children were hospitalized at a hospital in Seattle in 1993 with bloody diarrhea. The doctors afterwards found that these symptoms were caused by certain kinds of bacteria that usually grow in raw meat. This, experience shows that the meat of fast food is sometimes unsafe due to the dangerous bacteria it contains, causing the spread of some diseases for adults and children. In this context, it can be argued that the proper hygiene -- hand washing and the disinfecting of all surfaces that come in contact with the meat -- is essential. It is also recommended to avoid unnecessary contact with live meat and poultry in order for the bacteria not to be transferred to the humans who work close to it. Lastly, it can be said that close inspection of slaughterhouses and the techniques followed in meat processing and packing is an important approach that may protect people against the dangerous effects of the bacteria that is found in meat. While Schlosser criticizes the process of slaughtering and processing meat for food, he attempted to send the message that the employees in slaughterhouses work under very bad conditions, which may be hazardous both for them and for the meat eaters. Hence, Schlosser makes a very insightful link between health and politics, as he touches upon the bad conditions of workers in some slaughtering houses. Because those who work in slaughterhouses face very hard conditions, live a hazardous life, and earn minimum wages, many slaughterhouse owners prefer to hire illegal immigrants, who are mostly not covered by health insurances. Thus, Schlosser implicitly argues that illegal immigration is the real threat of the spread of deadly diseases in the United States due to the fact that they constitute cheap labor, working in slaughterhouses. In that sense, Schlossers presentation of the problem and his recommended solution seems valid and convincing because he aims at fighting the phenomenon of employing illegal immigrants, who usually do not health insurance, which may constitute real threats on citizens health. Works Cited Camarota, Steven A. "Immigrants in the United States — 2000 A Snapshot of Americas Foreign-Born Population." Center for Immigration Studies. Jan. 2001. 30 Nov. 2011. “Fast Food Culture is Expanding Worldwide.”11 Jun. 2005. 30 Nov. 2011. Mercola, Joseph and Droege, Rachael. "Why Junk Food is so Tempting, And How to Beat Your Temptation." 14 Feb. 2005. 30 Nov. 2011. Read More