In the United States today, we have an epidemic of obesity. When we think about this problem, we point fingers at restaurants like McDonalds, saying their foods and serving sizes are to blame. However, I would argue that our lifestyles are really to blame. We are so busy that we go to fast food restaurants instead of eating healthy meals at home. Until we stop ourselves, from going too fast food places and from eating other premade food, the problem of obesity in the US will not go away. Customers at fast food restaurant have been known to blame restaurants such as McDonalds, Burger King, & Wendy’s to be a factor in obesity. It also has been tested to show that fast food restaurants can cause health problems. There have been lawsuits against fast food restaurants because of the growing obesity epidemic. Many customers have gotten diabetes and heart attacks because of fast food. Today, America is one of the most overweight countries in the world. In fact, health officials say that obesity a condition in which a person is dangerously overweight is one of the biggest health crises facing the U.S. today. It's also affecting a shocking number of young people: More than 16 percent of kids’ ages 2 to 19 are obese. It can cause all sorts of serious problems, like cancer and heart failure, and it's a leading cause of death. Since Americas been growing so have restaurant portion sizes. A lot of the general public blames the obesity on McDonald’s, but isn’t it us who eat there? It’s not as if McDonald’s forces us to eat there. Fast food restaurants cannot be blamed by customers who choose to indulge their product. Customers choose to eat there it’s not the restaurants fault. Nobody cannot singly blame anyone person or corporation for the obesity of America. Maybe we can prevent some of the obesity in America, if we learn to control the amount we eat. There are three traps in foods that make people fat or overweight. They are simple sugars, saturated fat, and hydrogenated oils. Fat food is loaded with these traps. Simple sugars provide only a quick burst of energy. They can leave you feeling sleepy. They are mostly found in soft drinks, ice cream, and most fast foods. Saturated fats can be good or bad. The bad which is saturated fat can do a lot of damage. These can be found in red meats and many of the oils that the fast food chains use. It can also cause heart disease. Hydrogenated oils are the most dangerous of these three. They can stay in your system forever. They are artificial saturated fats. Food companies use them as preservatives and flavor additives.
Because of these traps more than one third of us (33.8%) are obese. 17% of our children is obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Senior natural scientist at research firm Rand Corporation and co-author of "Prescription for a Healthy Nation”, Deborah Cohen, believes that McDonalds and Krafts corporations must take most of the blame. She thinks that in several ways consumers cannot withstand unhealthful food all the times because humans are native to want sugary and fatty food. Add that with several consider same marketing messaging, and it is difficult to survive the temptation.
"Overall consumers are cutting back on spending, so when they go out to eat, they get something they really want," said Sara Monette, director-consumer research at Technomic. In a recent Technomic report, data show that only 23% of consumers polled strongly agree that they tend to pick healthful foods when eating out.
As for the other 77%, the fast-food industry is trying to give them options, even if it's in response to outside pressure. McDonald's in July announced menu modifications with the promise that by 2020 the chain will reduce added sugar, saturated fat and calories through varied portion sizes and what the company called reformulations, reducing sodium an average of 15% across its national menu by 2015. It also said it was revamping the Happy Meal,...