Mbita Sikazwe
Professor C. Jason
Smith
ENG 101
10 December 2013
The fast food industry is one of the biggest and most
profitable industries in the United States. Fast Food restaurants are
unavoidable because of their ubiquity. In any suburban area there are multiple
fast food restaurants near each other. The competition amongst the major
franchises is also fierce. The
restaurants have has advertisements everywhere, trying to get whatever edge
they can against their competition often shunning each other’s products in
their advertisements. The industry’s largest consumers are children; therefore
most advertisements are marketed towards children. The largest cause of obesity amongst children
in America is fast food. One of the biggest debates is who should be blamed for
this the parents or the fast foods. The fast food restaurants don’t force
parents to buy fast food for their children, the parents should be blamed
because they are the ones that chose to buy supersized meals for their children
and allow schools to give their children toxic food.
Since the beginning of the empire that is the fast food
industry, that started to become more profitable in the 1960s, the likes of
McDonald’s and other fast food giants have targeted children in their
advertisements. They have found that this is the best away for them to increase
their profits and gain more customers.
One of the biggest reasons they say is because if they can get children
to nag their parents they not only get the children to buy from them but they
end up having two or more customers.
Many children consume fast food more often than they should because it’s
efficient and cheap. When a parent works an eight-hour shift and is driving
home, if they are unwilling to cook they just go to the drive through and five
minutes later dinner is prepared for a very affordable price. Although fast
food maybe cheap and fast it’s no excuse to jeopardize children’s health.
Obesity has been increasing in the United States in the past
decades. The increase of fast food restaurants has a correlation with increase
of obesity amongst children. Children are consuming fast food at an alarming rate.
Parents buy fast food for their children and now many schools nationwide are offering
fast food meals in their cafeterias. The effects of obesity are very well documented. Children who get obese at a young age are at
risk of suffering a myriad of long term effects. Being obese at a young age can lead to high cholesterol
and blood pressure. High cholesterol and
high blood pressure can lead to life threatening heart diseases. Recent research has also found that
overweight children can get type 2 diabetes, which is mostly found in adults. It’s time for parents to put a stop to this
deadly disease that can easily be avoided.
Fast food is a savior for many parents. They buy their
children fast food three to five times a week to avoid cooking when they come
back from work, or to simply avoid spending any time with the pots and pans. Fast
food in school cafeterias has also lead to a disturbing increase in child
obesity. Parents can’t take their children’s health for granted anymore. It’s
advisable for parents to cook meals at home every day. Although cooking maybe
time consuming, the long term effects are more harmful than preparing healthy
food at home. Parents also have to take a stand against the kind of food being
given to their children in school cafeterias. If these measures are taken
children will be much healthier and live longer lives.
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