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Obesity and its effects on americans
Effects of fast food in the US
Obesity and its effects on americans
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Did you know that one out of two Americans from lower income families would eventually get diabetes? This startling statistic should reinstate what people have been suspicious about in terms of their food supply. The food that most Americans consume is merely poisonous, and people should reconsider what, and how they eat. This is the result of having businesses govern and dictate what foods should be made for the sole purpose of profit. Furthermore, Companies have examined and determined that sugar, salt and Tran’s fat is a reliable additive to their food products because the taste targets certain areas in the brain, which eventually could make consumers addicted to their product. With that being said, companies choose to ignore the fact that …show more content…
In addition, Scientists have been studying the nutrition available in food for a long time to the point that, they have made a few strides in their research of food. The only problem that face scientists is that, they usually have an agenda when their working on the science behind food. Their agenda is looking merely at the science behind food, which seems like an innocent objective, but has been proven to hold more setbacks than improvements. With that being said, they sometimes reach certain conclusions which fail to produce any true positive impact, in fact, they’re conclusions has had a negative effect on many people because they follow what these scientists announce. Consequently, these scientists have been announcing than denouncing their discoveries when they realize their mistake because their world revolves around an ever changing knowledge in this field. In the novel, In Defense of Food, Michael Pollan pointed out, “The constantly shifting ground of nutrition science that, depending on your point of view, is steadily advancing the frontiers of our knowledge about diet and health or is just changing its mind a lot because it is a flawed science that knows much less than it cars to admit” (4). As a result of this flawed science, people have been buying food that doesn’t benefit them whatsoever based on the advice they received. Furthermore, the food they buy improves sales to certain enterprises, and these enterprises therefore flood the market with their products. Which makes many people wonder if these scientists have true intensions of working behind food, or if their just in this industry to make some quick, and easy money by using their position and knowledge to boost profits for certain
Michael Pollan, an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism (Michael Pollan), writes in his book In Defense of Food, the dangers of nutritionism and how to escape the Western diet and subsequently most of the chronic diseases the diet imparts. In the chapter “Nutritionism Defined” Pollan defines the term nutritionism. Pollan’s main assertion being how the ideology of nutritionism defines food as the sum of its nutrients, and from this viewpoint Pollan goes on to write how nutritionism divides food into two categories, with each macronutrient divided against each other as either bad or good nutrients, in a bid for focus of our food fears and enthusiasms. Finally, Pollan concludes that with the relentless focus nutritionism places on nutrients and their interplay distinctions between foods become irrelevant and abandoned.
The book Salt, Sugar, and Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us discusses the danger of food with its readers. The dangers of food discussed in the book are the ingredients of Salt, Sugar and Fat in the food individuals consume on a daily basis. Producers use these ingredients to their advantage to get the consumers bliss point. The bliss point attained is used by the food giants to achieve a profit. However due to research on the health risks of these ingredients food companies are strategizing in order to maintain their profit and earn more of a profit.
The western diet consists of foods high in sugar and fat, as well as a large consumption of red meats and refined grains. As a result, people who consume a western diet face problems with their weight and often have many diseases related to poor dieting. Pollan believes that the food industry and medical community take advantage of this. Pollan claims that the food industry will change their processed food and sell it back to the consumer rather than removing the process food all together. The medical community will treat people’s diseases instead of helping to prevent theses disease by educating people on how to make healthier life style choices. Mary Maxfield believes that these points made by Michael Pollan are hypocritical. She states that Michael Pollan is taking advantage of the consumer the same way he claims that the food industry and medical community are. Pollan would criticize the food industry and medical community but at the same time publish and sell his theories on how to eat
The food that we as a nation consumes reflects the health and well being of the American people. We have become so accustomed to fast food and easy, unhealthy, diet choices that diseases like diabetes has become very prevalent and on the rise. One in every three Americans born after 2000 will contract early onset diabetes. In the film “Food Inc.” takes a look into a typical grocery store and reveals the illusion of variety. Most of the food in the industry leads back to corn. High fructose corn syrup, a sweetener made from corn starch, is found in many of the foods and beverages that we consume. High fructose corn syrup has been linked to metabolic diseases like obesity and diabetes. Corn has become very affordable and abundant and big food
However, the outcome was different from his desired result due to strong protest from the dairy and livestock industry, so the Congress instead urged people to buy lean meat and less fat food so the dairy and livestock industry do not go out of business. This created the fat-free boom in the market in the 1980s. However, food companies began to put more sugar in their products because the taste was bad when they reduced fat in the food. Now, the sugar intake of Americans has doubled compared with before. In the American market, there are approximately 600,000 different food products, and 80% of those include sugar. Although sugar is written in various forms and names, one suggests that it’s bad in any form, especially if taken too much. Sugar consumed naturally through fiber-rich fruit or vegetable should be fine, but the added sweeteners stimulate the hormones that increase insulin. High insulin prevents people from thinking they are full, and thus crave more food. This causes many diseases. Of course one meal high in sugar will not kill them, but the problem is that people generally exceed daily sugar intake in one meal alone when consuming process food. We eat more processed and convenient food instead of fruits, vegetables, and
Some might complain about the guilt they feel knowing they are willingly consuming sodium benzoate and soybean oil. Which, according to Warner, isn’t a bad thing. If one is buying a blueberry muffin, most likely, they’d be interested to know that those “blueberry” pieces are the result of an experiment. If it was common knowledge that out of the 5,000 additives found in food barely a half has been tested, American’s would ponder their diet. While change is never easy, it isn’t hard to spark a movement towards change. This is evident with the shift towards eating better. Perhaps it will amount to no more than a trend, but throughout history, science has never surpassed the natural world. That is why the natural world has survived as long as it can, because, in many ways, it’s the best you can get. Pandora’s Lunchbox possess the ability to spark something more than a general knowledge of cereal factories.
As a result, she concludes that science has nothing to do with Pollan believes that Americans rely on nutrition science, the study of individual nutrients like carbohydrates, fats, and antioxidants, to fix the Western diet because it is the best source that exists. However, scientists have developed conflicting theories that confuse people to conclude as to how the Western diet causes disease, such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Pollan disagrees with any type theory and instead blames the food and health industries who take advantage of new theories but do not to fix the problem of the Western diet. In turn, not only does he suggest people spending more time and money on better food choices, but he also proposes many tips to eat better, as well as a rule that will allow Americans climb out of the Western diet: Eat food.
Food science has also done some damage to people’s diets by replacing fresh food in our supermarkets to aisles of boxed and frozen food that lack nutrients in them This problem was noticed in 1977 when a document called Dietary Goals for the United States was created after rates of coronary heart disease had soared in America since World War II. In 1977, the lipid hypothesis, it proposes that dietary or saturated fat causes heart disease by raising the concentration of cholesterol in the blood. Government has been changing the Dietary Guidelines for the United States quite often which proves not even scientists know everything about nutrition. Nutritionism has led to the creation of processed foods which has been
Pollan’s "In Defense of Food" was effective in presenting its argument. The documentary included many persuasive strategies that appealed to the reader and evoked reconsideration of food. Pollan approaches the argument with shocking imagery, evidence, and an overall presentation that provided a stark contrast between what is realistically healthy and what American society calls “food.” As the viewer I felt impressed and persuaded.
In “Bad Food” – What’s the Best Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables”, Mark Bittman suggests that the people of America should stop eating unhealthy foods so often. In the article, Bittman tells his audience that people with “heart disease, diabetes and cancer are all in large part caused by the standard American Diet” (page 35). He also states that eating healthy can result in a better health care system, saving millions of lives. The big issue is Americans eating unhealthy every day, but proposing a plan to help stop it from happening.
Andersen relies heavily on the testimonials given and fails to give evidence that changes the audience’s perspective. Andersen and his team also rely on the scare tactic thrown around numerous times for evidence by manipulating data to construct a negative representation of specific animal-based foods. Although, this film does a great job of persuading the audience into a plant-based diet by showing the health advantages that none can disagree with. Then again, a plant-based diet should not be considered the only healthy diet since countless diets have been found to promote a healthy lifestyle. However, all individuals should lean towards more plant foods, but do not have to completely reject animal products.
America is a capitalist society. It should come to a surprise when we live like this daily. We work for profit. We’ll buy either for pleasure or to sell later for profit. It should come to no surprise that our food is made the same way because we are what we eat. We are capitalist that eat a capitalist meal. So we must question our politics. Is our government system to blame for accepting and encouraging monopolies?
It became so clear that junk foods lead to a punch of catastrophic diseases like obesity, type two diabetes, vascular diseases and cardiac disorders. Those kinds of diseases cost more than $150 billion annually, just to diagnose, treat people who suffer from them. That disease is chronic and leads to many health-related issues, for example, obesity considers a risk factor for type two diabetes, and high blood pressure, joint disorders and many others (The Denver Post 2012). The key of preventing many chronic problems is nutrition. Low income plays an important role of limiting most people to buy and eat a healthy diet and in the other hand, it is easy for people budgets to purchase junk foods. So controlling the prices of healthy foods to be suitable for all people make good nutrition available for everyone. Adequate diets mean decreasing the epidemic of those serious diseases, and stopping the spread and break the bad sequences that may happen. Long-term exposure to junk foods that are full with chemicals like additives, preservatives have led to chronic illnesses difficult to treat. Also, the chemical added to junk foods are tasted unique and made millions of people becoming addicted to them and are available everywhere for example in restaurants, cafes, lunchrooms (The Denver Post
...k out of their home (Center n.d.). Modernization and development has left our working class people scrapping by to provide food for their families. To “solve” this, and increase their profits, corporations are now controlling the people’s nutritional needs. Since the development of the first sugar plantation businesses have been pumping sugar into our veins. We graciously accept this form of cheap nutrition because industrialization has left us inadequately prepared for survival in the fast paced consumer world. Simon Capewell, a professor of clinical epidemiology at the University of Liverpool sums up the issue with sugar in modern time by saying, “Sugar is the new tobacco. Everywhere, sugary drinks and junk foods are now pressed on unsuspecting parents and children by a cynical industry focused on profit not health.” (NHS Choices: Your Health, Your Choices 2014).
While some diseases are hereditary, most are preventable, But it’s hard to prevent a disease when companies such as Nestlé, Mondelez, and PepsiCo are increasing the levels of sugar, salt, fat, and flavor to products like soft drinks, candy, and cured meats. Food science research has shown that these types of products can stimulate neural circuits similar to those that are stimulated in cases of drug addiction. (Tempels, Verweij and Blok, 2017). In order for those companies to sell as many products as they can they prey on Americans and people around the world disregarding what their products may do to their health? Advertisements from these companies tempt people to give in and buy products they don’t need to eat. Promoting diabetes prevention or obesity prevention would be more successful if there weren’t so many temptations standing in the way of it