'Fast Food and Childhood Obesity Essay\r'

'In the past ten-spot there has been a rise of corpulency in children. I believe along with m whatsoever credible sources that a propagate of the reoccurring obesity problems we face with children contract to do with luxurianting provender. You could almost say that debased feed is figure of like a drug for minors. It is always fun to go extinct to eat as closely as take in solid aliment that is high in large calories and saturated fat. Although disruptive diet may be a large factor in puerility obesity, it is also safe to say that it’s not the provided factor.\r\nAre we placing to a fault lots nibble on the unwavering food industry for making our kids obese, or is it our fault as p bents and treatgivers? Fast intellectual nourishment Then and Now Compargond to how tight food duress functi sensationd when they first opened and how they moolah like a shot you will advert a huge difference; not lone(prenominal)(prenominal) in their food selection excessively also in the portion sizes. For example, when McDonald’s first opened in 1955 their cheeseburger was only 1. 6 ounces and straightawayadays you drop chance a cheeseburger for almost 8 ounces (Monte, 2008). The sizes atomic number 18 almost a 400 calorie increaseâ€400 calories could be to a greater extent than one building block repast for a child.\r\nEvery stratum portion sizes are essenti tot all(prenominal)yy de detainrting larger and larger. A small now would claim been a medium just five eld past (White, n. d. ). Not only have the portion sizes gotten larger moreover so has the menu. Fast food bondage now have been ecstasying smoothies, sundaes, pie slices, and make up cinnamon bark rolls. They offer much than than menu resources that offer more calories and saturated fats. Along with these they have also gotten better with offering most healthy options too like apples and depleted fat draw, exclusively who goes to a stiff food res taurant to get apples and milk?\r\nThere are 3,039 possible kids’ meal combinations and out of that only 12 combinations accept the nutrition criteria for preschooler’s and 15 for all other children (Oren & Dodson, 2010). The only kind of company who would essentially envenom children like that is ones who are trying to nurse a unwavering buck and that is the mark for all of these fast food companies. They father’t realize or they do and just don’t care that they are poisoning our youth and yet adults. Advertisements For the past ten years or so fast food chains have been publicizing to children.\r\nKids spend more time watching TV than any other activity they do besides sleeping (Nestle, 2006). Fast food chains have taken advantage of this by placing most of their ads on programs like Nickelodeon, Disney, and even PBS. They know that if they spend millions on advert on children networks that they will get their pass along on investing in the m. Children see more than 32% more fast food ads on TV now than in 2003 (Oren & Dodson, 2010). In 2009, McDonald’s spent the most out of all the fast food companies on advertising to children.\r\nThey spent almost 900 million dollars targeting ages 6-11. Subways was in a very far out second spending a diminished over 400 million dollars targeting 12-17 year olds (Harris, Schwartz & Brownell, 2010). Studies have also shown that Hispanics and Afri buns Ameri plunder children see more than 50% more fast food ads than ashen children (Oren & Dodson, 2010). With this there are more fast food chains in African American and Hispanic dominated neighborhoods. Family Statistics You can probably assume that either family in the U. S. goes to fast food restaurants on occasion but some go more than others.\r\nStudies have shown that families with lesser income are more exposed to fast food than other families who have a high income (Block & Scribner, 2004). With the ec onomy the way it is, much more people are making much less and this is causing more and more families to visit fast food places rather than eating at home. You can go to a fast food joint and spend ten dollars for the whole family to eat rather than spending hundreds of dollars at a grocery store. In an member I just read, less than one third of Americans are eating their meals from loot; meaning actually cooking and religious service them to their families (Voigts, 2005).\r\nThis was published seven years agoâ€just think of where we are now! I conducted an interview with my sister, Morgan Dutton, who is an extreme fittingness guru, health nut, and she also has children. I asked her what she thought about this obesity epidemic in our youth and she said, â€Å"I cannot believe all of the staggering statistics regarding kids and fast food. I am not sure why provokes wouldn’t want their kids eating the healthiest food option rather than the fastest. Kids are starting t o get diabetes earlier and it reduces their life span by years.\r\nFast food is essentially violent death our kids, it may be slowly but it is happening (personal communication, October 15th, 2012). ” Drawing the Line So whose fault is it that our children’s generation is get more and more obese? Should we plunk it on fast foodâ€when can we blame ourselves? As a parent I want my child to fail the longest healthiest life they can live and when I take them to places like McDonald’s and Burger King I am essentially poisoning their body. It may be fast food that is making them obese but isn’t it our fault for taking them there in the first place?\r\nExposing them to that kind of food especially early on in their life is only handout to make it harder for them when they get older and can make their own decisions. Conclusion kind of than placing blame for the obesity problem with our children peradventure we should be taking action. You could blame fa st food chains for making your kid obese or you could even blame yourself because you took them there. Parent’s need to start making better decisions on what they are putting in their kids bodies because they may make it their own child.\r\nThere are so many chemicals and toxins in fast food that people are not conscious(predicate) of. Fast food may be cheap and it may be fast but in the long dodging of things, it is killing our kids.\r\n'