Fast Food

[NotoriousARAB]

Is fast food responsible for a crisis in public health? In the United States, 2/3 of Americans are overweight and half of this group is considered obese. An estimated 300,000 Americans die of obesity-related causes each year, and the direct medical costs of obesity are over $100 billion annually.

Who is responsible for this problem? Is it the companies that are making these high caloric meals and their encouragement to increase portion size? Or is does blame rest soley on the shoulders of consumers? Or maybe both need to take responsibility for their actions?

Please justify your responses.
Thanks

[tabloid]

interesting topic. I'm thinking that advertising these products to children is very unethical, as they are not educated enough about nutrition to make concious decissions.

[NotoriousARAB]

Originally Posted by tabloid

interesting topic. I'm thinking that advertising these products to children is very unethical.

I was thinking this very same thing. They lure kids in with play areas and toys.

[EDC]

Fastfood is one of the issues that made me drift away from libertarianism. Individuals can't be trusted to keep themselves healthy. I would be in favour of a tax on fastfood to discourage people from eating it with the revenues going towards community athletic programs.

[NotoriousARAB]

Originally Posted by tabloid

as they are not educated enough about nutrition to make concious decissions.

Shouldn't the parents who are purchasing the meals for them be held responsible?

[ChickenTuna]

self discipline.

[tabloid]

I'm not for over taxing food, because for some that's all they can afford. But like I said above, they should be restricted on who they can advertise too. I think all advertisment to children should be heavily monitored. Children are not capable of making educated decisions as consumers.

[devire1]

the advertisement of fast food targeted towards children should be banned, just as the advertisement of cigerattes towards children was banned. both the trans fat and other things contained in fast food and cigarettes have been linked to cancer. the personal responsibilty argument does not apply to children in both cases.

[NotoriousARAB]

Originally Posted by EDC

Fastfood is one of the issues that made me drift away from libertarianism. Individuals can't be trusted to keep themselves healthy. I would be in favour of a tax on fastfood to discourage people from eating it with the revenues going towards community athletic programs.

Interesting idea.

Another suggestion could be that the companies could change their menus and add more low calorie foods and smaller portion sizes.

[tabloid]

Originally Posted by NotoriousARAB

Shouldn't the parents who are purchasing the meals for them be held responsible?

I guess you don't have kids. I don't either, but I have a lot of friends with small children. Should adverisers be allowed to make parents jobs more difficult? Next time you go to a large grocery store pay attention to the 3' level.

[IraHays]

Maybe we should start forcing people to excersise. We can have police monitor the population to make sure they get at least 30 minutes in on the treadmill every day.

[nutsy54]

Originally Posted by NotoriousARAB

Who is responsible for this problem?

The fatass who continues to pick up food and place it in his mouth, while plopped on the couch watching TV, is responsible for his own health problems. Nobody is forcing him to make stupid decisions on an hourly basis. Nobody locked him inside his house, out of range of a treadmill or even nature walk.

Originally Posted by tabloid

Children are not capable of making educated decisions as consumers.

Nor are children capable of making purchases as consumers. Fat kids are due to negligent parents.

[IraHays]

Here is a guy that ate McDonalds for 30 days straight. Poor guy, look what it did to him.

http://www.truthinfitness.org/projec...s/journal.html

[nutsy54]

Originally Posted by tabloid

I guess you don't have kids. I don't either, but I have a lot of friends with small children. Should adverisers be allowed to make parents jobs more difficult? Next time you go to a large grocery store pay attention to the 3' level.

Unless that small child is swiping his own credit card at the checkout, I really don't see your point. Ultimately, the parent is purchasing bad food for their child. Boo Hoo, Mommy & Daddy actually have to be parents, and say "No" every once in a while.

[Rambo26]

the individual is solely responsible

[NotoriousARAB]

Originally Posted by Rambo26

the individual is solely responsible

But what about the advertisements that entice people to buy it and how after 7 or 8 at night there are lots of comercials for food advertising how they're open late at night? They make it look so tastey : (

Another problem that I see is healthier substitutes are more expensive and more time consuming than fast food. Do you think that if the companies offered a healthier substitute there would no longer be obesity?

[Rambo26]

Advertising may be powerful but we arent just brainwashed, also nutsy's point was spot on about the young kids not being the ones buying the stuff!

I would say basic healthy food is cheap enough here at least, and people eat loads of crap because they want to and nanny state intervention is ineffective

[xer0xed]

Originally Posted by NotoriousARAB

Is fast food responsible for a crisis in public health? In the United States, 2/3 of Americans are overweight and half of this group is considered obese. An estimated 300,000 Americans die of obesity-related causes each year, and the direct medical costs of obesity are over $100 billion annually.

Who is responsible for this problem? Is it the companies that are making these high caloric meals and their encouragement to increase portion size? Or is does blame rest soley on the shoulders of consumers? Or maybe both need to take responsibility for their actions?

Please justify your responses.
Thanks

No... Americans are responsible. They're already "taking responsibility" by getting fat as houses and dying younger from heart disease and other ailments.

[xer0xed]

Originally Posted by IraHays

Here is a guy that ate McDonalds for 30 days straight. Poor guy, look what it did to him.

http://www.truthinfitness.org/projec...s/journal.html

Wow. =o

[Uncle Bob]

I'd have to say being obese is mostly the individual's fault. No one shoves a certain food in your mouth. You choose. And some people just don't have the ability to say no to overindulgence. Fast food is bad, but most places serve somewhat healthy alternatives and give you nutrition information. Unless you can't read, you know what you are putting into you. But just like any other topic in the US, god forbid there is any personal accountability and responsibility.

[AKR]

Originally Posted by NotoriousARAB

But what about the advertisements that entice people to buy it and how after 7 or 8 at night there are lots of comercials for food advertising how they're open late at night? They make it look so tastey : (

so if someone started advertising crack on tv, it wouldn't be my fault if i went down to my local crack dealer and bought some? if they advertised burgers with rat poison, it'd be their fault for me being dumb enough to eat them? oh noes, there's an ad on tv! i must buy everything i see! i must do everything they say!

i see commercials every day. i drive by fast food hell holes every day. i never go in. i'm responsible for myself. if other people don't give a **** about their health, good. so be it. hurry up and die and get off my planet, you mindless, **** eating, pigs.

Another problem that I see is healthier substitutes are more expensive and more time consuming than fast food. Do you think that if the companies offered a healthier substitute there would no longer be obesity?

fat/unhealthy people enjoy the taste of unhealthy food. you can offer all sorts of options, but they're gonna find the fatty food.

[Power-Quest]

Originally Posted by ChickenTuna

self discipline.

At 6.5 weeks out from a contest thats the first thing that came to mind when i read the title , i want fast food but self discipline tells me it will add fat not take it off.

For average humans , not BBers / athletes / other
technology advance and natural human progress = life easier = lazy =Fat gains / health issues.

Untill mother nature reboots the earth/life = we start all over - lazy.

This all bieng just my own theory for the moment , subject to change.

[Beatitude]

Originally Posted by NotoriousARAB

Is fast food responsible for a crisis in public health? In the United States, 2/3 of Americans are overweight and half of this group is considered obese. An estimated 300,000 Americans die of obesity-related causes each year, and the direct medical costs of obesity are over $100 billion annually.

Who is responsible for this problem? Is it the companies that are making these high caloric meals and their encouragement to increase portion size? Or is does blame rest soley on the shoulders of consumers? Or maybe both need to take responsibility for their actions?

Please justify your responses.
Thanks

I think fast food plays a big part in it. I think the bigger picture is just that Americans tend to have such a rushed style of living that they don't eat properly. U.S'ers are major consumers of fast food, soda, junk food, etc... Ever since the beginning of the 20th century with Teddy Roosevelt the U.S. has been an incredible consumer of sugar. On top of that, you'll also notice that the average U.S.'er drives A LOT compared to other countries. We spend far too much time in our cars. Combine that with a poor eating style, and you've got lots and lots of obesity.

I think everybody needs to just go outside and gnaw on raw oats for like a week.

[tabloid]

Originally Posted by nutsy54

Unless that small child is swiping his own credit card at the checkout, I really don't see your point. Ultimately, the parent is purchasing bad food for their child. Boo Hoo, Mommy & Daddy actually have to be parents, and say "No" every once in a while.

So you think it's fine to advertise to children? Do you have kids?

who educates the parents about nutrition? You are on a BB website.... but in the real world when people try and loose weight they stop eating the bun on the burger.

[nutsy54]

Originally Posted by tabloid

So you think it's fine to advertise to children? Do you have kids?
who educates the parents about nutrition? You are on a BB website.... but in the real world when people try and loose weight they stop eating the bun on the burger.

I really have no idea how to respond. . . It seems you'd rather have people give up every shred of responsibility and accountability for their own actions?

"The TV told me to do it, duh, what other option did I have. . ."
Heaven forbid parents actually take the time to educate themselves and properly raise their children (and themselves). How could we ever expect a parent to say No to a kid who wants an inappropriate lunch, snack, or video game.

[Mark_ey]

Fast food is EVERYWHERE, of course it's going to be hard to resist it. It's not good for you either so yea it's contributing to health problems in this country.

[OneBetter]

stupidity and no self control.

[AKR]

Originally Posted by Mark_ey

Fast food is EVERYWHERE, of course it's going to be hard to resist it. It's not good for you either so yea it's contributing to health problems in this country.

once you actually read about what it's doing to your body, it's not as hard. most people just ignore the facts, or they are just too lazy to learn about them. my coworker is fairly overweight, and while i think he's a good guy, he's just plain stupid when it comes to nutrition. fat people usually try to lose weight in the dumbest ways, simply because they don't bother to educate themselves. i just don't understand why people don't simply read about the food they are stuffing down their throats.

[SFriday425]

People are aware of the effects of eating too much fast food and they choose to eat it anyway. Therefore it is their fault, and their fault only.