Fast Food Restaurants

A thick juicy patty combined with crispy smoked bacon,its unexpected flavor combinations burst from a lightly toasted sesame seed bun, is considered a form in which fast food is displayed.Their catchy taglines and flashy advertisements are ways they displayed on a daily basis, whether it’s displayed on your commute from school to home.Fast food restaurant negativity affects children’s and teen’s health and lacks the nutrition needed to maintain a diet. However, fast food restaurant is an easy alternative in order to fill an empty stomach.

Since, food is one of the highest branded food due to the high command of purchases. Fast food restaurants such as McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, Taco Bell in addition to many other fast food restaurants chains, characterized for being known as something that’s quick and easy to grab on the go. Fast food advertisement is an eye-catching endorsement that attracts consumers that are willing to seek and indulge in high calorie food but for a low cost. Restaurants use advertisement to promote a brand new or even sell their “new and improved” menu items. Fast food restaurants also advertise special toys within their kids’ menu items, which targets children and teens. Such things engage children and teens into consuming fast food.

Fast food restaurants negativity affects children’s and teen’s health throughout their daily lives. During early childhood ages, the youth consumers are risking their health because of fast food restaurants. According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition “One study examined trends in portion sizes for fast food, restaurant food, and at-home foods and found a much larger increase in portion sizes for fast food than restaurant- prepared identical food item.” (Duffey, Larsen, Jacobs, Williams, and Popkins, paragraph 3) Obesity first begins when children and teens are introduced to fast food because this tends to increase the craving of the junk food and leads to children and teens ordering more food. Once they indulge fast food, they have the urge to crave it more often.Fast food restaurants influence young consumers due to “their spending power, their purchasing influence, and as future suit consumers” according to the Food Advertising and Market Directed at Children and Adolescents in the US. (Story and French, paragraph 8) The food market intentionally attracts young consumers because children and teens often have the urge to crave fast food without realizing how it can affect their health. This may lead to poor health such as “diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some forms of cancer” stated by American psychological association. (APA, paragraph 5) As children are gradually getting older and their body is evolving, being exposed to unhealthy junk food can be harmful to their bodies. Without acknowledging the damage, it is doing to children and teens through the process of eating unhealthy and greasy food. Consuming fast food can progress to critical health issues. The more children and teens are continuing, let alone consuming to crave junk food, the more their body will adjust to junk food and lack nutrition.

Children and teens should be exposed to nutrition in order to maintain a strong and a healthier body at an early age. According to Food environments and obesity- neighborhood or nation states that “the association of lower incomes and food insecurity with lower intakes of fruit and vegetables.”  (Cummins and Macintyre, paragraph 2) Due to the lack of income children and teens are unable to pay for a healthier meal. Which leads to children and teens lacking the nutrition that are actually needed to build their body. Stated in Fast Food restaurants use among adolescents: association with nutrient intake, food choices and behavioral and psychosocial variables “most adolescents consume diets that are higher in fat and lower in fruit and vegetables than recommended. It is therefore important to identify factors associated with high-fats diets, particularly among adolescents.” (French, Story, Sztainer, Fulkerson, and Hannan, paragraph 3) Even when children and teens begin to realize how fast food is affecting their diet plans, they usually still reach out to fatty food and disregard the fruits and vegetables that is actually needed. Just because children and teens are not always able to obtain the nutrition that fast food has; children and teens seek out for fast food restaurants for other purposes. Fast food restaurant may not contain the nutrition needed for children and teens, however fast food restaurants have other purposes for children and teens.

Fast food restaurant is an easy alternative to fill an empty stomach of children and teens. Children and teens are directly targeted throughout the food industry because of how much they are able to consume unhealthy and greasy food. “Highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the United States are found among the lower-income groups” stated in the economics of obesity: dietary energy density and energy cost. (Drewnowski and Darmon, paragraph 1) Not only does fast food restaurants attract children and teens, but fast food restaurants also attract low income families into satisfying their or their children hunger for food. According to the economics of obesity: dietary energy density and energy cost “they are inexpensive, good tasting and convenient. In contrast, the more nutrient-dense lean meat, fish, fresh vegetables, and fruits generally cost more.” (Drewnowki and Damon, paragraph 1) Unlike other restaurants, fast food restaurants have a separate menu, known to be the dollar menu. Children and teens often find that section of the menu to be extremely convenient because of how fulfilling it is to their needs. It is cheap, quick and easy. In addition, does “Healthy” Fast Food Exist? The Gap Between Perceptions and Behavior states “for customers wanting to eat less, eating at a “healthy” restaurant will result in eating a healthier meal.” (Downs, paragraph 4) In the fast food restaurant industry, there are plenty of healthy alternatives which contain nutrition that children and teens need. However, children and teens don’t often reach for healthier options because of how addicted they are after consuming fast food once.

Fast food restaurants negativity affects children’s and teen’s health and lacks the nutrition needed to maintain a diet. However, fast food restaurant is an easy alternative in order to fill an empty stomach. Nowadays, recent generation of children and teens often do not care about where their money is being spent, yet alone what is going into their body. The only thing that children and teens worry about when it comes to food is whether the food is good or not. This leads to children and teens damaging their body. Unware of the junk food that is being consumed. To prevent children and teens, from consuming and lacking the nutrition that is necessary for their body, they should seek and start experiencing different alternatives. For a long-term goal, alternatives that can benefit their body in order to be stronger and healthy such as consuming organic supplements or even trying out vegan food.  Parents should also provide their child or teenager foods that have nutrition’s that are low in fat, saturated fat, low cholesterol and most importantly high in fiber. This nutrition filled foods will maintain that healthy diet and can be an easy alternative for children and teens as an easy grab and go meal that will fill an empty stomach.