What You Eat Is Your Business By Radley Balko

Did you know that “every day 1 in 4 Americans visit a fast food restaurant? If that’s not alarming to you, then consider this, left unabated, obesity will surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in America.” (Clark, Charles) Fast food has become a part of American culture. With the way the world is today who wouldn’t want to eat somewhere that can have you in and out in five minutes for fewer than five dollars? It has been made very clear that Americans love to eat as we rank number one most years as the world’s most obese nation, but it’s not just America. In his documentary, Morgan Spurlock notes that, “Popular fast food chains like McDonalds, now operate in more than 126 countries in six continents having more than 31,000 restaurants globally.” (Spurlock 2004) The most alarming part about all of these statistics is the groups they most affect. The catchy advertisements and addictive qualities of the food is what has everyone coming back for more. Fast food companies advertisements targeting the young and lower classes are the cause for the obesity epidemic in America.

In a 2003 court case, “Caesar Barber v. McDonald’s Corporation, et al.,” Barber claimed he was unaware of the nutritional and fat content of the fast food he ate on a near-daily basis for decades, and which he claimed caused his multiple illnesses (Daily Caller). The people of the court ruled that Barber’s choice of food was the cause of his many health issues, not the restaurants which supplied the fast food. In this case, the court held the consumer responsible for his selections; however, the court’s expectation of personal responsibility in food selection will most likely become anachronous. The article “Is Fast Food the New Tobacco?” addresses the issue of rapidly growing fast-food chain restaurants, such as McDonalds, Burger King, and Taco Bell, and the health issues that perpetuate from an increased amount of these restaurants. Anywhere we travel today, out of town, to a big city or a small village, consumers are bound to see some sort of advertising for fast food. Many billboards display life-size pictures of steaming hot sandwiches, fresh-cut fries, or an ice cold beverage. The streets are lined with bright, golden arches, fluorescent bells, or a red-headed, smiling little girl. All of these modes of advertisement draw consumers in, whether they be hungry or simply in a rush with no time to cook dinner at home, and feed them food that just isn’t up to par with healthy-eating standards. Notice, these restaurants don’t use force to bring customers in by the masses;

In the article “don’t blame the eater”, David Zinczenko focuses on the reason behind the obesity problem that the modern young generations are facing. According to him, the large chains of fast-food restaurants given their availability around the country and low prices are the ones causing this problem. He brings in his own life experience and tells the story of becoming a 212 pound teenager highlighting that he had to rely on these fast food chains for everyday meal. With a single mother, who worked long hours he had no other alternatives to this like many other American teens. The lack of information about the calorie content of the dishes on these restaurants was one other main concern. Most of these restaurants do not provide enough data about the calorie content of their dishes, and even if they do so its mostly vague and deceiving. To show the gravity of the problem he pulls out a statistics of an increase of 30% in type 2 diabetes resulting in an expense of hundreds of billions of dollars in healthcare. Zinczenko implies that this impact is as serious as smoking. Hence, fast food should have a warning label to raise awareness among the consumers. He addresses these food chains as vulnerable and warns these restaurants that they will find themselves in trouble unless they look out for their consumers. He also adds the further effects these food habits can have in our society.

Today, approximately 1 of every 3 adults in America suffers from obesity. In a world where people are surrounded by fast food 24/7, it is hard to come up with solutions to the growing obesity problem. In David Zinczenko's article Don’t Blame the Eater, written in 2002, he defends people who began suing fast food companies for their obesity. He justifies their choice to do so by pointing out the insufficient access to healthy food, the lack of choices for people who cannot afford to eat healthily, and the absence of information fast food companies provide about their products. These are used to convince his audience that the people who consume fast food are not to be blamed for their obesity because it is the fast food companies that are at

In the article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” by David Zinczenko he argues that it is not always the consumer's fault that they consume food that is bad for them. Zinczenko tells a story of how when he was growing up he practically lived off of fast food. His parents were divorced. His father was always trying to get his life together and his mother worked very long hours. Due to this he didn't have many other options besides McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell or Pizza Hut. Zinczenko shows how fast food restaurants are more available than healthier options. He writes “Drive down any thoroughfare in America, and I guarantee you'll see one of our country's more than 13,000 McDonald's restaurants. Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit.” Today Type 2 diabetes makes up at least 30 percent of all new childhood cases of diabetes in the United States. This is a shocking increase

Food politics, one of the most complicated discussions of all. Four authors, four articles, and four opinions. The first article is “The Pleasures of Eating”, by Wendell Berry, is about health. His article is not only about our health, but our foods health. Berry speaks of blind eating and clueless purchasing, that we don’t know what we are eating. Some questions asked by Wendell Berry were “How fresh is it? How pure or clean is it, how free of dangerous chemicals? How far was it transported, and what did transportation add to the cost? How much did manufacturing or packaging or advertising add to the cost? When the food product has been manufactured or "processed" or "precooked," how has that affected its quality or price or nutritional value?”

In the article “Don’t Blame the Eater” by David Zinczenko , he argues his point of view that Fast-food companies are a health issue. What Zinczenko focuses is the topic on how kids are becoming obsessed and the reasons connecting to Fast- food chains. This article being in the “New York Times” means that there must of been a broad audience who read this article. For those who did stumble upon to read it, they were probably agreed with Zinczenko because he composed a well supported article. He was able to communicate his point of view across to convey his audience with a variety of methods.

However, this is not the case as fast food restaurants are vastly spread increasing chances of ordering meals from them instead of cooking at home. This, however, is not a concrete reason to blame fast foods for the heightened levels of obesity in America. There are cases where people do not reside near fast food restaurants but take the time to travel to purchase the fast foods. Thus, it is clear that locality of fast food restaurant is not to reproach for the high levels of obesity in America, but the people bear the blame. People choose to walk into restaurants and order fast foods regularly amid the danger surrounding their decision (Davies, and Hiram 42).

We are all guilty of spending five dollars a meal from McDonalds or Burger King instead of taking a little time the day before and making our self our own meal, but let’s keep in mind that just because is made home doesn’t mean is healthy. According to the article “The state of obesity” by better policies of America more than one third of adults (34.9) are obese in the United States. But why is there so much obesity in the United States and who is there to blame? We can go ahead and blame the fast food restaurants or we can blame the people itself. Individuals are the ones to blame for the obesity in the United States because they have this idea of eating fast and easy, but just cause is fast does not mean healthy. Fast food are part of our daily life but is does not forces us to eat it.

In “Don’t Blame the Eater”, the writer, David Zinczenko, initially argues that those teens who are fat because of eating fast food from restaurants like McDonalds, should take responsibility for their obesity. He then sympathizes with the obese children by giving his own childhood example. His mother and father were usually away working and he had no other choice but to rely on fast food restaurants. He argues about the growing number of fast food chains, how FDA doesn’t take notice of the ingredients that are not mentioned on food packaging and how it is the responsibility of the parents to make sure that their children are eating right. He also argues that the money fast food chains like McDonalds are spending on advertising and targeting

We are all guilty, we rather spend five dollars on a McDonalds or Burger King meal, instead of taking a little time the day before and making our self our own meal, but let’s keep on mind that just because is made home doesn’t mean is healthy. According to article “The state of obesity” by better policies of America more than one third of adults (34.9) are obese in the United States. But why is there so much obesity on the United States and who is there to blame? We can go ahead and blame the fast food restaurants or we can blame the people itself. In my opinion the individuals are the ones to blame for the obesity in the United States because they rather have fast and easy food even though it’s not healthy, individuals rather have cheaper meal, and because they don’t exercise enough to burn the calories they consume throughout the day.

Some wonder whether if the fast food industries should be held accountable for people’s obese attire and health, others say that it is the independent consumers’ responsibility. About 37% of American adults are obese and approximately 17% of children are reported obese as well. Researchers say about 3/4 of Americans will be obese by the year 2020, or maybe sooner (Muntel). It certainly does not seem to be slowing down, unless somehow fast food industries can find indigents to make their food a bit healthier or that people limit the amount of times they go to the restaurant and keep track of their eating habits.

Many studies have shown that obesity is not only around but it’s here to stay and it’s on the rise. In (the obesity blame game 2006) Lorraine Heller explained that “being overweight comes down to a simple balance: energy intake versus energy burned and a fundamental Change in lifestyle has resulted in the last part of the equation being increasingly ignored”. In today’s society many Americans want to have someone to blame, shoving bad food into one’s body at a fast food restaurant isn’t the peoples fault, it’s the fast food industries fault. Now that doesn’t sound right, now a days many people prefer to eat out in America people are always busy. When hungry and in a hurry there are many fast, convenient, and healthy items available. Many people who insist that fast-food chains are a main cause of obesity in America because there are a plethora of fast-food restaurants on every block with few healthy alternatives, are not looking at the whole picture. Mark Bittman stated “in 2010 the average American, regardless of weekly earnings, watched no less than an hour and a half of television per day. The time is there” (is junk food really cheaper?

The American society is being distracted by T.V advertisements, video testimonies, and fast food companies who’re encouraging individuals to consume fast food. This is an example of propaganda and a technological control. Obesity itself may cost a significant amount of money in the U.S. in addition to death. According to the article “Food for Thought: Malnutrition and Obesity” by D. J. Shaw, he states that the CDC has estimated that about 280,000 Americans dies each year from being overweight and also that obesity is costing the United States a whooping $240 Billion dollars in health care (351). Americans aren’t receiving the necessary motivation to exercise and practice a healthier lifestyle. Major fast food restaurants such as McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, and Five Guys are falsely encouraging individuals to eat their food. They’re taking advantage of them by taking all their money. Instead of spending the money on whole foods, fruits, and vegetables, they’re spending all hard earned money on junk food. In addition, consumers don’t realize that these major food corporations aren’t telling how many calories are in their products. As customers, we have the right to know how’s are food being processed and how many calories (sugar, fats, cholesterol, sodium) are in the food.

“As Americans add pounds, critics are increasingly blaming the fast-food industry. Teenagers have filed lawsuits against McDonald’s, saying that the fast-food chain caused their weight gain and loss of health. A public health group in California has asked the governor to declare childhood obesity a state of emergency. But parents—not the fast food companies, not the government—are in the best position to fight the epidemic of overweight children.”. They are the consumer who chooses to get the quick, and easy fix. They do not realize they are compromising their own health, and their children’s health.