Fast Food Essay Examples and Research Papers

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What is Fast Food

Fast food is a common occurrence in the average American’s life these days. You can’t drive down the street without seeing at least one fast food joint, often more than one. In fact, fast food is popping up all around the world, McDonald’s in other countries even have special items on their menus. The reason for the hype is the accessibility. Fast food is so easy, anyone can run and grab some cheap food and feed their family. However, some people really seem to hate fast food. It’s not good for you and it targets the poor with a cheap meal, but with health consequences. Fast food companies use chemicals or antibiotics in their food that are not good for any human to consume on a regular type of basis (Nedelman). With all of the controversy, one thing is for sure: fast food is not good for anyone.

The issue remains to be that fast food just is not healthy. Healthy foods don’t contain antibiotics from chicken. They don’t make people feel sluggish or ill after eating them. Healthy foods come from wholesome ingredients, such as vegetables or farm-raised animals, and they do not have preservatives, antibiotics, or some other pesticides or maybe even growth hormones in them. Nobody grabs Wendy’s expecting it to be the picture of health, but the problem is, people have stopped caring. These restaurants post calorie counts and give nutritional information, but many people look the other way. The reason is clear, people want to ignore what is going into their bodies. If they remain ignorant and refuse to acknowledge the contents in their stomach, they can pull the blame from themselves and put it onto the mistakes the fast food companies make in making these food options.

Effects of Fast Food

The effects of a heavy intake of fast food are widespread throughout the body. For starters, the physical effects are certainly obvious. Fast food leads to diabetes and obesity, which, in turn, can lead to cardiac death, cancer, and strokes. (Food Revolution). A study published by the Journal of Adolescence showed that one single serving of French fries consumed per week during adolescence can increase women’s breast cancer risk later in life by 27%. Another study published by Circulation indicated that eating fast food one time a week increased the risk of death from coronary heart disease by 20%. This risk grew even more, 50% in fact, for people who consumed fast food meals 2 or even 3 times a week. (Food Revolution) Aside from these issues, other physical implications include increased risk for headaches due to the increased amounts of sodium in fast food meals. Acne can occur at increased rates due to the amount of carbs in a typical fast food diet. Carbs and sugar in fast foods can destroy tooth enamel and lead to dental cavities. Insulin spikes are common in humans that eat a lot of fast food. Insulin spikes can lead to several things such as insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. And finally, bloating and puffiness can occur because the high amounts in sodium lead the body to retain too much water.

Aside from the many physical effects that this food can cause, it can also cause several mental problems. A study conducted by the Public Health Journal concluded that people who eat fast food are 51% more likely to develop depression. This statistic, also, was only analyzing people who consumed 2 servings of fast food a week. Some of the other mental health implications from fast food included brain fog, mood swings, anxiety, violence, and aggression. (Food Revolution)

The effects that fast food consumption has on children is astounding. The effects that fast food has on children is arguably has just as harmful effect as it does on adults. Obesity rates increase in children that eat junk food. Empty calories in junk food encourage children to eat more due to insufficient nutrition. Children that eat junk food can see rapid deterioration in their arteries at young ages. A large effect on children revolves around the effect that fast food consumption has on school work quality. High sugar content in fast foods decreases energy levels and slowly takes away from a child’s ability to concentrate. Again, leading back to the effect that “empty calories” has, a child could feel hungry again in as little as in hour, also leading to a disruption in concentration. This assumption was also backed up in a European public health journal titled “Child: Care, Health, and Development”. Researchers analyzed the fast food consumption in 12,000 fifth graders and analyzed their test scores on math and reading tests. Children that ate fast food four to six times a week scored significantly less on these science and reading related tests that the children who didn’t consume fast foods and such rates.

Similarly, to the effects fast food has on adults, fast food will also cause children to become depressed. Fast foods lack antioxidants, which are prominent in fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants lead to positive brain function and thus a large intake in these foods lead to a decrease in nutritional values needed to have a healthy brain. Children who get into the habits of already eating these foods have a large amount of trouble trying to reengage in a healthy diet later in life. Because of this, much of the same health risks can be prominent and increasingly worse throughout one’s life. Sugar intake in both fast foods and the sodas that usually accompany these foods cause children to become irritable. The high sugar content causes glucose level fluctuations and make them edgy, sleepy and angry. As a result, children also are not motivated to be active. High sugar contents also ruin bedtimes and sleep cycles.

The negative effects of fast food consumption are extremely widespread. However, the convenience and cost-effectiveness of fast food makes it such an easier food choice. Certainly, something to be considered is that fast food in light moderation is not at all extremely detrimental to long-term health. Multi-billion-dollar fast food corporations have nutritionally effective food options, especially when consumed in moderation. Lately, in a new change of pace, these eateries like McDonald’s and Burger King now offer entirely nutritional meals for its customers to combat the negative effects of fast foods. In addition, the new millennial age has paved the way for a number of food companies to take ground in their selling of extremely nutritional meals. Places like Chipotle, Panera Bread, Chop’t, Subway, and many more contain and sell meals that are supposedly entirely fresh. In Chipotle and Chop’t for example, ingredients are prepared right in front of the eye. These meals are perfect because they are able to offer the nutrition that humans need and the same nutrition that isn’t offered in fast food options. The idea of “empty calories” is somewhat unheard of in these meals.

Fast food Popularity

Fast food is such a mass popularity appeal and lots of people eat it across the world, but why is this? Many people eat fast food and the reasons I have mentioned are just some of the reasons why this happens. On cnn.com, Cheryl Fryar says, “On any given day in the United States, and estimated 36.6 percent or approximately 84.8 million adults consume fast food”. This just comes to show that fast food is a very popular food choice in the US alone. With all of the fast food restaurants around the country, you can just see why it is such a popular choice for food. Fast food is a very popular option in our world today due to it being a cheap way to get a meal, the sugary taste we all love, and the convenience of having restaurants all over the world.

When you look at the cost of fast food compared to buying all of the supplies at the store, you can see how much cheaper it is to just get fast food. The average cost of ground beef per pound is $3.88 in the US (bls.gov). American processed cheese per pound costs $3.85 (bls.gov). Just with those two prices combined, that is already $7.73 for one pound of each item. While a Mcdonalds cheeseburger costs $2.79 (mcdonalds app). As you can see the price for a Mcdonald’s Cheeseburger is far cheaper than buying just two items to make the burger excluding the bun. Most stores only sell in pound amounts for meat such as Walmart and Fred Meyers. With that being said, you would buy the items by the pound causing the price to go up depending on how many you are making. Also most people don’t just buy one Cheeseburger at a fast food restaurant. Most people buy a meal at said restaurant which raises the cost even more for both sides of the equation. With the cost being so convenient in the fast food world, many turn to this route rather than making the food themselves.

Fast Food Addictions 

Fast-Food addictions The fast-food addiction is a growing problem in society today. It is one of the most contributing factors of the increasing rates of overweight civilians. Being overweight causes not only people to be unhappy about their bodies but also creates health problems that may lead to an early death in their life. However, due to the addiction to fast foods, it is very difficult for them to lose unnecessary weight that they have gained. How have these addictions grown to be such a large problem that humans currently face? Fast food addictions eventually result in several other problems in society such as diabetes and obesity which is why it is an issue that needs to be addressed. But what causes fast food addictions in the first place? The food industry’s unnatural texturizing, coloring, and high-tech flavoring are the main causes of fast food addictions we see daily.

One of the main causes of the fast food addictions is the texturization of products. It doesn’t seem like it matters but textures are a necessity to customer satisfactory. As an example, when you eat something that taste like beef, you should expect it to look and feel like beef. “In order to give a processed food the proper taste, a flavorist must always consider the foods ‘mouthfeel’- the unique combination of textures and chemical interactions that affects how the flavor is perceived” (Baur, Holly. Food Matters..[Yuzu]). As shown, texture is something that companies tend to take seriously in order to pinpoint the exact flavor that will attract customers. If the flavor does not match with the texture, it can often be a shock to customers, and they may not enjoy it. For example, not many people want to bite into a hamburger, and have it taste like bananas. Textures can also manipulate people into desiring the product even more. In the article “Why people love to crunch—with texture rivaling taste in foods appeal, companies scrutinize the way we eat” the author Chaker states, “Food companies are paying closer attention to consumers texture preferences as they drill down on attributes that make new products stand out on store shelves”. When the texture is taken into consideration, it makes food much more appealing and desirable. Not only does texture provide a good mouth feel, but it also satisfies people’s emotions. This is why Chaker also states, “Many companies see texture as a way to address consumers’ emotional reasoning for eating”. This can be shown when people are in a stressful mood because they often want something crunchy like chips. By acknowledging the different emotional preferences of textures, companies are able to make products that are suitab