Obesity Epidemic In America

English 112
19. Feb. 2012

The Obesity Epidemic In America
Obesity is a trending topic in America affecting every state, every city and every community across our beautiful country. Obesity is a defeat to our nation becoming the fastest growing cause of disease and death in America. This new wave of obesity is hitting us where it hurts and spreading its grip on our homeland. Obesity is becoming a modern day murderer and the fact that this phenomena is completely preventable is mind boggling. American citizens are becoming blind to false impressions on labels, in the media and in advertising tricks that glorifies fast food in a positive light. We as American’s need to combat obesity by dieting, exercising and even taking legal action is
Leaving him to defend for himself his daily choice of dinner came between Mcdonalds, Taco Bell, Kentcukey Fried Chicken or Pizza Hut. In Zinczenko’s words he stated “Then as now, these were the only available options for an American kid to get an affordable meal”. By age 15 he had already packed on 212 pounds to his once lanky 5-foot-10 frame. The convenience of the fast food industry alone contributed to Zinczenko as well as many other American’s obesity. Living the fast food diet is not the way to go being that nearly 2 out of every 3 American’s are overweight or obese I don’t feel like people are listening to the facts. According to U.S. Department of Health and Human services 1 out of every 8 deaths in America is caused by an illness directly related to overweight and obesity. Think of it this way statistics tell us that of the 30 kids in an average classroom, at least 3 will die from a completely preventable illness correlated to being overweight or
Zinczenko agrees with this statement, when he writes attaining to labels on fast food being misleading “ For example, one company’s Web lists its chicken salad as containing 150 calories; the almonds and noodles that come with it (an additional 190 calories are listed separately. Add a serving of the 280-calorie dressing, and you’ve got a healthy lunch alternative that comes in at 620 calories. But that’s not all. Read the small print on the back of the dressing packet and you’ll realize it actually contains 2.5 servings. If you pour what you’ve been served, you’re suddenly up around 1040 calories, which is half of the government’s recommended daily calorie intake”. Basically, Zinczenko is saying that fast food companies are not telling the whole story. Advertising is another big influence on America’s obesity epidemic McDonalds and Burger king alone spent 1 billion dollars in advertising just to get there product seen. From my own experience in fast food commercials they show a perfectly constructed sandwich and fries. When you actually receive the product fries are thrown in the bag and a patty is just slapped on the buns. This false image of a perfect sandwich is never seen in person but always on billboards and T.V. That is not all, when targeting young adolescence fast food companies use cartoon characters, toys and other items that have a powerful influence