More Than We Can Chew

How many meals do we really need in a day? Fast food restaurants sell meals that provide a mass amount of calories that increase every few years. Burgers have tripled in size and calories in the history of fast food. Burgers trump their ancestors from years before, but also contribute to the ruin of the health of society and its environment. Years have gone by while people have become more obese in America, and fast food have become more unhealthy. Fast food is becoming increasingly less healthy to people and the environment. The food industry has increased obesity, consumption rate, and meal portions. Such that the industry has put more stress on the environment for the constant demand for food. The fast food industry hands out meals that almost contain the daily recommended amount of calories. 

As fast food is always booming, the progression of lab grown meat is scoffed at for being a better alternative. Lab grown meat lowers the amount of environmental harm and cuts down the levels of fats in the food. Lab grown chicken is the same as normal chicken, just without the fat. This fat is also one of the reasons why chicken tastes good. Taste is a big factor that makes people not prefer alternatives to the food they love. The taste is a long standing quality of food that people wouldn’t want changing. The author Trae Norton agrees with this deduction on how consumers resist change in new food technology because they are unwilling to change their habits in his article “From the Lab to the Supermarket.” 

Because society loves to hold on to their choice of food many people don’t notice the reasons that make fast food an unhealthy option.

First, the portion sizes that are served in fast food restaurants easily exceed the requirements of a healthy diet. Restaurants are serving meals that double the amount of calories we need. According to “Fast Food: Unfriendly and Unhealthy” the entire menu at fast-food outlets in America has more than twice the energy density of recommended healthy diets. The energy density the article refers to is the number of calories in food. With the main meal, sides, and drinks, consumers are eating more than their body needs and in turn have extra food that will not be processed the same. The extra food will get stored in the body and turn into fat. These serving sizes become a natural portion to those who get accustomed to eating at these designated fast food places. As the industry grows, so do the consumers and the portions.

Second, solutions in the unhealthy diets caused by fast foods are unpopular due to the freedom that fast food outlets allow their customers. Lowering portions and reducing the fats and sugar in the menu would cause defiance by the public. The change in taste that would come in the reduction of the certain ingredients would force them to think that they are getting forced to eat healthy. And on the other hand, any reduction in portions would make them think they aren’t getting enough bang for their buck. The fast food industry has built their empire upon unhealthy food and freedom among the customers. Any reform could cause catastrophic rebellion, for the people would feel like they can’t eat what they want anymore. Society has been formed to believe that they can eat whatever they want because it tastes great and cheap at the same time. This alone creates a negative stigma of our approach to how we eat.

Finally, the food consumption rate has promoted the large industrialization of meat production. According to “From the Lab to the Supermarket” thirty percent of the viable earth is used by livestock systems. Also, that meat production alone produces around twenty percent of total current greenhouse gas emissions. Being a food product that is in constant demand creates stress for increased production which becomes an unnatural source of pain for the environment. Productions become stretched upon the livestock and the farmers to feed this mass amount of animals. The resources used for the creation of the burgers sold at Mcdonald’s for less than five dollars. The price and convenience are so good that it’s so easy for everyone to make the fast food industry an important marketplace. The importance keeps food production always at top speed. If anything, the products are sold at almost no time while depending on meat production and ingredients to keep up.

The different variations in people’s lives make it hard to notice the variables that produce an unhealthy diet, but according to “Fast food: Unfriendly and Unhealthy” identifies the qualities of fast food that are most vital to gaining weight.

“At least two important features of fast food could explain why fast food is fattening, namely, large portion sizes and high-energy density. It is well established that the bigger the portion size, the more we consume.2 Portion sizes of burgers, fried potatoes, pizzas, and soft drinks at fast-food outlets have all increased 2–5-fold over the last 50 years.”

The large percentages of each ingredient within the food that is consumed on a daily basis significantly increase the risk of weight gain. Fast food outlets provide items that contain high levels of sodium, trans fats, and sugar. These ingredients are not particularly unhealthy, to begin with, and are required for daily consumption, but the excessive amounts contained in the food become the elements that contribute to obesity. The sugary drinks and sides of fries are examples of foods that are high in trans-fats and sugar. The more these items go over the required mark, the more and more unhealthy they become. For if foods are not needed, the body can not utilize them.

There are many obstacles that fast food needs to overcome. Food that puts stress on the consumer and the environment is not healthy. Alternatives can prove to be a solution but lack the qualities that society approves. Our community loves how we eat and don’t want to change. Even if it means improving our overall health.

References

Kee, D. M. H., Sivanesswaren, A., Pandiyan, L. T. P., Jeyvendranathan, A., Yuganathan, L., & Alrashed, Y. T. (2019). Health Threats by McDonald’s. Journal of the Community Development in Asia (JCDA), 2(3), 45-51.http://www.ejournal.aibpm.org 

Norton, T. (2021). From the Lab to the Supermarket: In Vitro Meat as a Viable Alternative to Traditional Meat Production. Journal of Food Law & Policy, 11(1). https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jflp/

Stender, S., Dyerberg, J. & Astrup, A. Fast food: unfriendly and unhealthy. Int J Obes 31, 887–890 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0803616