Fast Food Obesity Epidemic

Fast Food Obesity Fast food has become a major health concern in today’s society. Extra calories found in fast food can lead to weight gain, and weight gain can lead to obesity. Obesity is a serious epidemic in the United States. The levels of obesity have skyrocketed over the years as well as the population of fast food chains. No one knows who to point the finger to when it comes to obesity. Fast food could be the prime reason for obesity. Unhealthy ingredients, rising portion sizes, misleading advertising, and widespread availability are all reasons why fast food should be to blame. The convenience of fast food makes it almost impossible for people to pass it up. Fast food plays a major role in the increasing rate of obesity in all ages.

These ingredients include saturated fats, sugars, and large amounts of chemical additives (Freeman2225). Consuming fast food results in serious health risks that many are unaware of. The ingredients found in fast food can lead to obesity, high cholesterol, heart attacks, and diabetes (Coestier2). Fast food contains a significantly greater amount of these harmful ingredients than healthier foods. High amounts of sugar are found in fast foods, and it has been said that these high amounts of sugar are the main reason for the obesity epidemic (Bariatric1). Healthy foods contain large amounts of vitamins and minerals that help one to feel full; fast food lacks these vitamins and minerals which causes people to remain hungry after consuming a fast food meal (Bariatric1). Not feeling full leads to overeating, and overeating leads to obesity. Fast food contains a great number of calories; ingesting these fast food meals exceeds the amount of calories one should eat in a day

Fast food companies are held liable for obesity because of their misleading advertising and lack of health risk information (Coestier2). Fast food restaurants tend to advertise their food in a way to make individuals crave it more. When fast food first became a health concern, companies changed the name of their foods to induce customers into believing that they were eating smaller amounts of foods (Young245). Changing the names of these foods put individuals at a higher risk of obesity. Fast food often lacks inaccurate nutrition labels (Freeman2226). Inaccurate nutrition labels can lead one to believe that what he or she is eating is healthier than it might actually be. Providing individuals with inaccurate health information can put their lives in serious danger. The New York City Health Department now requires all fast-food chains to provide the calorie counts of foods on the menu board (Young245). Presenting the amount of calories in menu items allows individuals to know how many calories they will be consuming. Knowing the amount of calories in one’s meal may help those who are obese or at risk of being obese. Research shows that fast food advertising shows a positive effect on the probability of being obese (Chou616). Banning fast food advertising would decrease the outrageous rates of obesity. Fast food companies lure children in by supplying them with toys if they purchase a meal.