In the short story “Don’t Blame the Eater”, author David Zinczenko states that teenagers are the targeted consumers for fast-food restaurants, due to the fact that kids do not have alternatives options. The author says he “guarantees you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonalds restaurants”(Zinczenko 242), but no healthy grocery stores up the block where teenagers can purchase fruits. Because kids are eating excessive amounts of fast food in one-day, there has been an increase in weight even to the point of obesity, therefore, causing individuals to sue McDonalds company for making “them” fat.
As a teenager, Zinczenko’s selections for lunch and dinner was a choice between McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Taco
Bell. His parents at this time had separated; the father was worried about rebuilding his life, “while his mother worked long hours to make the monthly bills”(Zinczenko 241). Because Zinczenko was a “mid-1980s latchkey kid”(241), a kid who returned from school to an empty home, for him these were the only affordable meals that an American kid could afford, then and even now. Teenagers who live on a fast-food diet almost never turn their lives around; those individuals are the ones who then undergo a lifetime of obesity. Aside from not having alternatives foods to choose from as a teenager, Zinczenko then explains that fast food restaurants also lack on the information of what exactly individuals are consuming. Fast food has no calorie intake labels as grocery items usually have on the packaging. Some of these fast-food restaurants provide a calorie chart only if asked by a customer, however, those charts are sometimes even difficult to understand.
First Zinczenko starts off with stating how kids are suing fast food restaurant and how parents are outraged. He explains how he has been in there shoes, growing up with split parents is not always easy. He started to put on weight; thankfully, he joins the navy in college. In where he learns to manage his diet. Throughout the reading he points fingers at the company more and more. According to Zinczenko, “There are no calorie information charts on fast food packaging, the way there are on grocery items” (Zinczenko,463).In other words, Zinczenko believes, fast food restaurants should label their food; he compares them to how grocery items have nutrional
Before that, Zinczenko was editor-in-chief of Men’s Health magazine as well as editorial director of Women’s Health magazine. He was able express his information about how there isn 't enough alternatives to lower the amount of citizens in the U.S that have diabetes and obesity. This is a portion from his essay that displays what he was trying to accomplish. Complicating the lack of alternatives is the lack of information about what, exactly, we 're consuming. There are no calorie information charts on fast-food packaging, the way there are on grocery items. Advertisements don 't carry warning labels the way tobacco ads do. With this Zinczenko was able to attract the readers attention and point to them a realization that gets the audience to look back and think about the last time they go to a fast food place and they don’t see any chart of the
He begins his argument by commenting about kids suing McDonald’s for “making them fat” (Zinczenko 462). Zinczenko ponders the absurdity of this claim considering how food choices are based on personal responsibility. However, he then considers the overwhelming availability ratio of fast food to fresh food while sympathizing he was once obese himself (Zinczenko 462). Zinczenko uses the primary argument that fast food companies are deceiving consumers with misleading advertisement, hidden nutrition facts, and calorie risks. He believes companies are encouraging the public to eat their unhealthy foods by omitting alarming information and levying “good” deals. In consequence, fast food companies are increasing the chances of obesity and diabetes in consumers by stimulating poor eating
In American, has an obesity epidemic that is growing year after year. According to the CDC more than one third 34.9% or 78.6 million U.S adults are obese and it continues grow. In the FDA recorders people that are obese usually have type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, asthma, heartburn and other digestive and mental health problems. The author David Zinczenko, the author of the article “Don’t blame the eater” thinks that fast food restaurants does not have alternative foods and not labeling their food products. Then there is Radley Balko the author of the article “What you eat is Your Business” believes that law makers should allow insurance companies to charge higher premium on obese people for their unhealthy eating habits. After reading both article, I disagree with Zinczenko idea of fast food restaurants not having fast food alternatives because fast food chains do have other alternative and they also label their food products
In “Don’t Blame the Eater”, by David Zinczenko and in “What You Eat is Your Business”, by Radley Balko both authors discuss and make their stance’s clear on their believed cause of obesity in America. On one hand, Zinczenko argues that it is not the consumers fault for putting themselves at risk of becoming obese or being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but that it is the fast-food companies fault. While on the other hand, Balko argues that we as individuals hold responsibility on whether or not we are putting ourselves at risk for obesity.
I have found Zinczenko’s article to be persuasive and effective with being herd on his view points of the topic. The strategies used worked very well and allowed for the information to flow. The only thing I feel he could have done better with would be his choice of words since they didn’t beef up the overall tone of how the author felt. Even though the words weren’t very strong he was still able to build his argument on other things such as his statements and the facts that supported them. The article overall was efficient on getting the reader into the topic and feeling a sense of anger towards the fast food restaurants which is affective since it will make people want to change the fast food domination of Americans diets.
Obesity in the United States, which the media has labeled a national crisis, has also been connected to poverty rates. Big fast food industry’s target poor communities, and spend millions of dollars each year to create advertising that appeals to these specific areas. These industry’s also target naïve children when advertising because they know that eating habits developed in childhood are usually carried into adulthood. Children who are exposed to television advertisements for unhealthy food and who are not educated well enough on good nutrition will grow up and feed their families the same unhealthy foods they ate as kids. A big way fast food giants are able to make certain young people have access to unhealthy food is by strategically placing franchises in close proximity to schools. They will often place three times as many outlets within walking distance of schools than in areas where there are no schools nearby. The way fast food advertising is targeted towards children is very alarming considering how important good nutrition is for young people and how a child’s eating habits can affect their growth and
Zinczenko provides a sound example of how easily one can be misled by the fast food company
Crouse, Janice Shaw. "The Fast-Food Industry Intentionally Markets Unhealthy Food to Children." Fast Food. Ed. Tracy Brown Collins. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2009. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.
Fast food restaurants such as Burger King and McDonald’s, create advertisements where it urges people to consume their product. For example Mcdonald’s created a product where you can get two items such as a mcdouble and a medium fries for three dollars. According to “The battle against fast food begins at home”, by Daniel Weintraub, it shows how companies are intriguing their customers. “ The center blames the problem on the increasing consumption of fast food and soft drinks, larger portion sizes in restaurants and the amount of available on school campuses”(1).For the most part, the Center for Public Health believes that fast food companies are the problem for health
Best selling author of Eat This, Not That, David Zinczenko’s article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” blames the fast food industry for the growing rate of obesity in the United States. Zinczenko’s main idea is that fast food companies should have warning labels on all the food they supply. Zinczenko believes that since health labels are put on tobacco and preserved food product, fast food industries should put labels on today’s fast food. Discussions about the availability of fast food compared to healthier alternative were brought up as well. Zinczenko states that when looked at, a salad from a fast food restaurant could add up to half of someone’s daily calories (155). He believes that because of fast food, Americans are having more health risks, which includes an insane rise in diabetes. Some agree with Zinczenko saying fast food companies should be the ones responsible to show people the truth about their foods. On the other hand Radley Balko, a columnist for FoxNews.com, states that fast-food consumption ...
When researching McDonald’s through online sources, it is clear that nutrition is a major concern of the public visiting the fast-food chain. Secondary research conducted shows that there are several case studies and other secondary source searches around the same topic. McDonald’s has often been the center of nutritional attention within the fast-food industry. Secondary research shows that the restaurant has recently made changes to the American Happy Meal to reduce the amount of French fries offered and replace the portion with fruit (Strom, 2011). In a study conducted by McDonald’s a secondary source reports the meal cuts calories by 20% for the children’s meal (Strom, 2011). This is a critical move by the organization on children’s obesity is currently a hot topic within food chains and attention is driven by the Obama administration. Secondary research also shows that although the public has major health concerns with the food chain, profits are increasing during a high point of an economic recession (Dahan & Gittens, 2008). Acco...
“Don’t Blame the Eater” is an article by David Zinczenko that explains to Americans, specifically overweight young Americans, about the risks eating at fast food restaurants and its cause of affecting one’s health. In his article, he tries to address the issue about America’s food industries by using literal devices such as tone, logos, ethos, diction, and organization in order to spread his message. He begins his article by addressing the topic and as he continues writing, he supports his topic by writing about personal experience and moves onto the reasons why his topic in a serious issue. Although he shows an overall clear progress, he does tend to have a few problems with his writing that could be improved.
Ask a teenager what their favorite fast food restaurant is and most of them will probably say McDonalds. "McDonalds operates approx. 30,000 restaurants on 6 continents, and feeds about 46 million people in a single day! In the U.S. alone, McDonalds accounts for 43% of the fast food market." Manhattan alone contains 82 restaurants packed into the island (Super Size Me). McDonalds has been criticized by the media and other people for offering too many unhealthy choices on their menu, therefore leading to obesity in America. Eating too much McDonalds, or any other fatty food, will give you many long term health problems.
The introduction to “The People Eat for Free and the Art of Collective Production in Maoist China” by Christine I. Ho begins with background information on the piece itself along with the standing of Mao and the socialist party during the 1950’s. While detailing this, Ho begins discussing how due to the communist influence over China, the collective nature of it leaked into the world as art as well. As, many works started being created anonymously and through the efforts of many individuals instead of just one. This notion was also true for the piece entitled The People Eat for Free, in which depicted a utopia of optimal communism where everyone helps everyone else and food is readily available for all. The collective nature of this piece was done to further the notion of a collective society in itself along with the intertwinement of government ideology and art.