In “Is Junk Food Really Cheaper?” By Mark Bittman, Bittman is expressing his views on how eating wholesome meals at home is healthier and less expensive than buying junk food from fast food restaurants. In his article, Bittman is stating the facts that healthy eating is affordable and can be obtained. He writes about how buying meals for a family of four from a fast food restaurant like McDonald’s can cost twice or even triple the amount as eating a simple and healthier meal at home. Brittman says that buying chicken, vegetables with a salad and milk will cost very little and if you substitute that for a healthier low sodium meal you can save even more. People need to realize there is a way to change our terrible eating habits.…
How are Americans supposed to eat healthy when they don 't have time to cook for themselves? It is no wonder that our nation has the majority of people eating fast food as standard diet. This should be a driving force for food production industries to focus more on quality and impact on the earth and our health, rather than making cheaper, higher calorie, higher sugar processed products.…
Zinczenko begins his argument by talking about how he was a latchkey kid who became obese, but grew up and eventually learned to maintain a healthy lifestyle. He argues that going out to eat was and is the easiest, most affordable choice. I agree that fast food is the easiest option because my own experience confirms it. Living away from home has really put things in perspective. I never realized how much it costs and how much effort it takes to go to the grocery store and then cook for yourself; it’s so much easier just to eat out. In “Remarks to the NAACP” Michelle Obama (2010) states, “…a lot of people today are living in communities without a single grocery store” (p. 423) this proves that there are challenges in trying to provide the healthiest food choices for one’s family, and that it is more convenient to eat out.…
Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivore’s Dilemma crosses paths with, “Fast Food Nation: The True Cost of America’s Diet.” Both works share similar ideas, themes, and lessons. “Fast Food Nation: The True Cost of America’s Diet” focuses on the average American diet, containing processed foods, fast foods, and more unhealthy products. Pollan, rather, wants to show the cycle from the farm to the food on the table.…
Both families spent similar amounts of money on proteins and on fresh fruits and vegetables, for example. The Casaleses spent $69.43 on protein costs and $44.21 on fresh produce, while the Revises spent $69.43 on protein and $41.07 on fresh fruits and vegetables. The major difference lies, however, on the percent of processed foods and fresh produce they ingested. While 23% of the Casaleses groceries were fresh fruits and vegetable and only 6% were processed foods, the Revises only had 12% fresh produce and a whopping 36% processed foods (even after deciding to eat healthier). In my opinion, this is a clear example of how the US market focuses more on processed food than fresh produce. Not only are processed foods cheaper and easier to come by, but they are also greatly advertised and distributed. Vending machines, fast foods, the media and print commercials all encourage shoppers to get processed products, and we let them brainwash us. Another similarity between them is that they ingest well beyond the average weekly amount of protein they need. For example, the amount of protein that is normal for people to ingest is from 322 to 392 grams per week. Both families were well beyond with the Casaleses eating approximately 594 grams and the Revises 472 grams per person. Not only does this reflect socioeconomic differences but also shows how the global market and cultural aspects influence what people eat as…
Poor diets due to low income parent haven’t got enough money to buy food they have to buy cheap food.…
This is made obvious when he requests his readers “drive down any thoroughfare in America, and I guarantee you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants. Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit.” (Zinczenko 463) Zinczenko undoubtedly believes that American’s would rather give into their hunger based on convenience rather than giving any of us props for consciously choosing to bypass the drive-thru and make the effort to find that infamous grapefruit. Zinczenko’s thought process is a bit misleading as he purposely sets out claiming the fast-food industry should be held accountable in their part played in America’s obesity epidemic, yet he then seems to defend that same industry by stating “They would do well to protect themselves, and their customers, by providing the nutrition information people need to make informed choices about their products.” (Zinczenko 464) There is confusion as to why the article begins in a manner of cynicism towards the industry that caused him to struggle with obesity as a young man, but ends in a manner of protecting the very poor dietary choices that made him that way.…
Schlosser, Eric. "Fast Food Nation: The True Cost of America’s Diet." McSpolight. N.p., 3 Sept. 1998. Web. 09 Aug. 2014. <http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/rollingstone1…
When it comes to keeping the human body, nutrition is the most essential part of everyone’s life. If people do not have full control, it will affect the way they will be in the future. Any change to someone's diet will change their body in the long run, whether it be positive or negative. It is quite apparent, especially in America, that the common person’s nutrition has gone down hill. Since the 1980s, the rate of obesity has inflated double the amount for adults and triple for children (“Obesity” p. 1). Shockingly, America spends more on fast food than on college education, computers, software and cars combined. In fact, in 2005, Americans spent one hundred thirty four billion dollars on fast food alone. In the ‘70s, America only spent six billion (Schlosser p. 10). I am not one to blame McDonalds for the drastic rise of poor nutrition. There are obviously other reasons why. I mainly blame the misinformation and myths that the general public has been told. The reason why that people are more unhealthy now than in the past is…
These stories are two opposite ideas that relate to one overall topic; your health. The stories being compared are called “What You Eat Is Your Business” by Radley Balko argues that watching what people eat is our own responsibility and in “Junking Junk Food”, Judith Warner implies that the government isn’t doing enough to prevent obesity. The first story discusses mainly how American obesity is a big problem and many people know that is unhealthy and the appropriate steps should be taken to minimize health failure. I agree with Judith Warner and also agree and disagree to some of Radley Balko’s…
He spent a fair amount of time – more than two years – researching for his book and he points out that one of the main reasons people buy fast food is because “it has been carefully designed to taste good. It’s also inexpensive and convenient.” (Schlosser 2001). Both journalists believe that with unhealthy food becoming so convenient, people are ditching cooking at home for a quick and cheap meal. Mark Bittman goes into great detail with this and provides us with a look at the…
With unemployment affecting ten percent of the U.S. population and employers cutting wages in every industry, focus shifts from proper nutrition towards an affordable meal. Take Whole Foods for example, in 2009 profits decreased by 4.0% versus a 9.3% increase in the prior year. Being the world’s leader in natural and organic foods they pride themselves carrying the healthiest and freshest products around, but it comes with a price. Their best selling items can be found in the self serve salad bar which runs from four to nine dollars. On the other hand those who opt for cheap rather than healthy may choose McDonald’s, whose total revenue increase by 17% in 2009. The top two most popular items on the McDonald’s menu, Big Mac and fries, each have 25-29 grams of fat; both items can also be purchased for less than $3.50 each and in some cases less than a dollar. For this reason it is easy to see that in a time of economical need nutritional value is not the deciding factor for lunch, or any meal for that matter. At this rate the cholesterol and…
It has been said that obesity in American has become an epidemic. What has caused this huge health issue in this great country? Many people believe fast food is to blame for America being obese. Is it really that simple? What could be some other possible reasons for our country being so obese compared to other countries? In this paper I hope to discuss these issues and show that fast food is solely to blame for this epidemic as well to inform the readers about what they are consuming and giving to their children to consume and in turn help people make lifestyle changes to live healthier.…
There is controversy over whether or not people should stop eating junk food. In the article “New Study Reveals Junk Food Good for You,” Billy Bunting believe some types of sugary, fatty junk foods “are better for you than so-called healthy foods” (Bunting). Throughout the article, he accounts evidences to verify his argument that eating large doses of junk food is good and a key to a long and healthy life. In “New Study Reveals Junk Food Good for You,” Bunting accounts studies, action points, and seven “tips to enjoy eating junk food so that its benefits can be fully realized” (Bunting).…
According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, approximately one-third of Americans are obese. There are several culprits to this alarming increase such as lack of exercise, failure to research nutrition information, and modality of convenience. Author of the book, “Fast Food Nation”, Eric Schlosser states the expenditure on fast food annually by Americans, has increased from six billion to 110 billion dollars in the span of approximately three decades. Schlosser correlates the increase of consumption to increase of Americans becoming obese. As mentioned earlier, fast food availability is only one aspect of the poor health epidemic. There are not enough valid grounds to prove the increase of obesity and diseases such as diabetes. The employees of the tobacco industry are not slipping cigarettes into the pockets of civilians forcibly. Similarly, these fast food corporations despite their sophisticated marketing are not completely directing individuals to consume their foods. Individuals have the freedom of choice and should be aware that their choices may lead to…