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Fast Food Obesity

Obesity is one of the serious issues that are affecting Americans today. A significant number of Americans are victims of this disease; moreover, this disorder affects both the young and the old. In US alone, at least 36 percent of the total population suffers from thee obesity. Researchers claim that the obesity has taken an upward trend in the last few years. The levels of obesity in the US have already reached a crisis point. It is unfortunate that in every three Americans, most likely two of them are overweight while at least one is obese. The above revelations are worrying, and it calls for a serious action to be taken so as to address the issue. People have a perception that obesity is for high class. However, even the poor are victims of the disaster because obesity is not a disease caused by only one factor. It is an illness that emanates from a combination of many factors. However, the fast foods are known to be the leading causes of this problem. It has been identified that Americans are consuming more fast foods than homemade food. The above revelation is shocking since it means that the number of obese people is going to rise at a rapid rate due to the growth of fast food industry. The growth of the fast food industry is a threat, and it exposes the society to increased cases of obesity. The paper will focus on how fast foods are causing obesity among the Americans.

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Claims

Fast foods are responsible for obesity in America today. It is worrying that the fast food restaurants dominate the hotel industry. The same have made it easier for individuals to access fast foods than it was forty years ago. In the last forty years, the fast foods were termed as food for the rich. They were not readily available to the poor since they could not afford it. However, the trend has changed a lot, hence nowadays fast foods are the cheapest food that anyone in the US can afford. The rich and the poor are the target populations for the fast food.

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It is very likely that an American can eat fast foods for the three meals of the day. Moreover, Americans feel that they are eating healthy foods, however, unfortunately they are exposed to many risks. They do not even realize how the fast foods affect their health status. One notable factor that makes many people to consume fast foods is because they are very appetizing, and seem to be addictive. The effects of obesity are very enormous, and they have far-reaching health implications. Obesity can be blamed for the high prevalence of chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, arthritis among other illnesses. Since these diseases are the major killers in the society today, there is an urgent need to address the problem (National Bureaua of Economic Research 2)
The primary solution to these issues is to control the amount of fast foods that people are consuming. It is undisputable that fast foods are the highest contributors to obesity in the society. Furthermore, regulations on the amount of calories produced by these foods are another target area that has to be addressed. People should be taught on what makes a healthy diet. The combination of these factors will make a significant step towards eliminating the issue of obesity emanating from fast foods in America (Mueller 1).

The highest consumers of fast foods are the youths and young children since they like sweet things. They are easily lured by the advertisements that have dominated the media on fast foods. For this reason, the rate of obesity among the youths and the children are taking an upward trend (Popkin 1).

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Fast foods are prepared with a lot of fats since most of them are deep fried. The fats accumulate in the bodies of individuals at a very high rate. Bearing in mind that exercising is considered to be an old fashioned practice, youths do not exercise today. As a result, there is a great accumulation of fats in the body. The body cannot be able to break the high level of fats since they are high than the required body intake. The heavy accumulation of fats poses a significant risk to obesity (Jacobs 190).

Many people already know about the harmful effects that emanate from the high accumulation of fats in the body. However, they have turned a blind eye to this issue, and are continuously consuming fast foods. Therefore, it is needful to argue that the high rise in the cases of obesity also relates closely to ignorance. People already know about the harmful effects that emanate from the fast foods, but they are heavily consuming the same (Paula 3).

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A recent study carried out in Michigan revealed that behavioral factors are the most contributing factors to chronic diseases. The researchers explained that there was a very significant relationship between the individuals who consumed fast foods more frequently than those who did not consume fast foods regularly. The residents who consumed less junk food had less risk of contracting the disease than their counterparts who consumed fast foods on a daily basis. Thus, the above study confirms the relationship between fast foods and obesity. It is very clear that fast foods are the primary cause of obesity among the Americans.

The heavy consumers are exposed to the highest risk of developing obesity when compared to those who consume it less (Yousef 1).

Other researchers have found that the portions of fast foods that people are consuming today exceed the recommended portions by the government. It was identified that the bigger portions motivate people to consume more junk foods. People ended up having a lot of calories that are beyond the body requirements. Establishing a balance between the calories intake and the physical activity is unattainable; thus, the individuals end up developing obesity (Yousef 3).

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Another key point in the relationship between fast foods and obesity is the fact that many Americans are consuming a lot of calories than what the body requires. The energy level in the fast foods that many companies sell is erroneous. For this reason, many Americans believe that they are taking the recommended calories, but, unfortunately, they end up taking more calories than the body requires. Furthermore, many hold a perception that such erroneous information provided by the manufacturers could not be right since the government cannot allow that. However, this issue has been in existence for a long time and, thus, the problem of obesity is still a problem till (Mueller 2).

As a fast food industry continues to experience a high growth rate, our dietary health is at risk. As the industry grows, we begin the journey to destruction of our health. Although the industries have been in existence for a long time, and the issue of obesity was not very prevalent, I would state that the levels of consumption experienced today, never existed before (Jacobs 190).

People are consuming fast foods for breakfast, lunch, and supper. To individuals, who may have knowledge of what is referred to as healthy eating, the above revelation may be shocking, but to others this may not be an issue. The massive consumption of fast foods only exposes our nation to a very significant risk of developing obesity among other related diseases. Moreover, fast foods are always comprised of components that produce a lot of energies. In this case, these foods are composed of high level of fats as well as carbohydrates. The amount of calories produced by the fast foods is much greater than what the body of a human being requires. As a consequence, consumers of the fast foods cannot evade the risk of obesity (National Bureaua of Economic Research 1).

In addition, the fast foods contain additives such as sugars. The additives only entice the customers. Furthermore, these additives will make individuals consume a lot of food. Perhaps this may explain the reason why most of the children in the US are gluttons. They consume a lot of foods since the taste of the sugars and other additives entices them.

Moreover, they consume these foods by bits, and they are never interested in other types of foods, i.e. fruits. The resultant is individuals who are obese and heavy weight. Moreover, these foods are consumed with more salts than the regular food. The fact that the high amount of salt dehydrates the body is another factor that contributes to obesity indirectly. Individuals have to take sodas or other flavored drinks so that they can quest their thirst. The coke among other flavored drinks, are known to add unnecessary calories of energy in the body. Therefore, a combination of the above products leads to obesity (Mueller 1).

I concur with the opinion of the nutritionists when they argue that fast foods are a representation of a poor diet. Individuals who are fond of fast foods do not consume the right balance of the nutrients. People eat carbohydrates and fats as the primary components of their diet. Vitamins, proteins and others miss in the diet. Individuals, who take fast foods, do not realize how they miss essential components. The fast foods components do not contain important elements such as fiber that play a key role in digestion. Lack of fibers may have adverse effects such as variations in energy density, gastric emptying, and even the satiety. Due to the energy density, some of the fast foods are known to comprise high amount of energy that cannot equate to the daily energy requirements. The resultant is accumulation of fats in the body and the same confirms that there is a significant relationship between obesity and fast foods (Jacobs 189).

Researchers have also identified that fast foods account for the high rates of obesity among school children. In this case, the fast food outlets are located near schools. Since the foods are cheap and affordable, children can quickly access them. As a result, schools that are located in areas where fast foods restaurants are found are more likely to develop obesity than their counterparts in other areas where such outlets do not exist. The above mentioned fact serves as clear evidence that those fast foods expose children to a significant risk of developing obesity. The same can be confirmed by the actions taken by the relevant authorities to close down outlets serving fast foods in areas that have schools nearby (Paula 1).

Fast foods are always associated with low-income earners. Low-income earners are not looking for quality but any food. They cannot afford a balanced diet nor to prepare meals at home. The fact that fast foods form a crucial segment of their daily food intake explains the reason the rates of obesity among the poor people is rising rapidly. The fast foods are the primary cause of obesity is also supported by the fact that in areas where there are a high number of fast food outlets, the rates of obesity are very high. For example, Texas has a lot of fast food restaurants and, on the other hand, it has more than 28 percent of the adults being obese. This should serve as an indication that fast foods account for the high rates of obesity cases that were are witnessing today (Popkin 2)

It is true that every individual wants convenience. People wish to get the things that they need at the right time and place. Fast foods fulfill these two characteristics. They are omnipresent since it is very hard to walk for two miles without getting a fast food restaurant. This trend has made the fast foods more attractive. People are more likely to consume fast foods than any other foods since they are readily available. The above factor explains why obesity is very prevalent among the Americans today. While I do not want to make a blind argument that fast foods are the only causative factors of obesity, I strongly affirm that fast foods account for the high cases of obesity than any other causative factors (Yousef 2).

Counter Arguments

Some people do not agree with proposition that fast foods are the main causes of obesity. According to the opponents, obesity is resultant of a combination of other factors and not necessarily fast foods. In this case, factors such as lack of exercises. The opponents argue that Americans are spending a lot of their time in offices; they rarely get time to exercise. Individuals who have this kind of trend are likely to develop obesity since they will not be able to establish an energy balance. Even if these individuals are on diet, they are likely to be obese since the take a lot of food and supply the body with adopt of calories that it cannot utilize (University Of North Carolina 3).

The opponents also reveal that in studies carried out among people who consume fast foods and those who do not, found that even those who do not consume fast foods are obese. According to the opponents, this reveals that the obesity does not just occur due to fast foods. The primary cause is poor nutrition because even individuals who do not have access to fast foods, but they are under poor nutrition are at risk. They pose a serious argument that consuming fast foods are just a single behavior of poor diet intake. There are many other poor food intake habits that many people have adopted today apart from fast foods. Moreover, there is no clear evidence that calories from fast foods are enough to cause an energy imbalance those results to obesity (Popkin 3).

The diet that the children feed on is complemented by fast foods. It can, thus, be argued that fast foods are a combination of unhealthy eating habits that many people are practicing today. The reality is that people are still taking a poor diet that is coupled with high amount of fats, carbohydrates among others while at the same time they are consuming little or no fruits. This is one of the core factors that can be blamed for the escalating level of obesity in America today (Colter 1).

Other unhealthy foods such as soft and sugary drinks are also significant contributors to the rising cases of obesity in the US nowadays. Since these types of drinks are consumed more frequently than fast foods, they are more likely to expose an individual to a high risk of developing obesity than fast foods. Researchers have found that these drinks are responsible for the production of unnecessary calories, and this factor should also be considered (University Of North Carolina 2). Furthermroe, the opponents argue that the fundamental concept is to establish a balance between energy intake and energy consumption. As a result, even if people ate fast foods and established such a balance, then obesity will not occur. The main argument is that people do not engage in physical activities and as a result energy imbalance occur leading to obesity (Colter 2).

Obesity is a key issue affecting the US today. A significant proportion of Americans are victims of this disaster. The trend has changed from the old assumption that obesity is a disorder for the rich. Obesity is also very prevalent among the poor people in the society. Fast foods are blamed for the rampant increase in the rates of obesity in our societies today. Fast foods are readily available, and they are very cheap when compared to other feeding options such as preparing food at home. The risk of obesity is accelerated by the fact that fast foods produce a lot of calories that are not useful to the body. In addition, less physical activity is another issue that has contributed to obesity. Since people are taking a lot of unhealthy foods and do not exercise, they easily become obese. Opponents of this argument, argue that fast foods are not the key causes of obesity. According to them, fast foods are just a single behavior of unhealthy diet that people are taking today. Finally, people should adopt good eating habits in order to evade the risk of obesity and complications related to the same.

 

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