6. Proposal against Fast Food Restarants

I propose that as a nation that we put a stop to fast food restraints hold on our children. It is very easy to tell that they are a huge factor to increase of adolescents who now suffer from obesity related diseases. Consumption has increased over 5 fold in the last 10 years. Because of the threat that fast food restaurants place on our population I believe that we need to regulate how far they can go to advertise their products as well as where they are allowed to build their restaurants.

Fast food commercials should no longer be allowed by law to air their commercials on stations that are primarily watched by children. Children are very impressionable and are easily tempted into using things that they do not understand. Secondly they should no longer be able to open restraints within walking distance (1 mile) of and public education centers. They make their services so convenient that kids would gladly walk across the street to eat their unhealthy quick meals. Also only healthy foods should be allowed into schools and all fast foods should be kicked out.

Healthy fitness programs should be instituted into all schools to help implement healthy lifestyles to all children and to prevent them from becoming obese due to sedentary movement patterns. Ultimately obesity is the number cause of death in the modern world. If we do not do anything to stop the spread of fast food chains, then the death toll due to obesity related health issues with continue to grow.

5. Other Factors:

Booth explains that, “Experts acknowledge the multi-factorial nature of overweight and obesity, and recognize that high levels of unhealthy foods advertised during children’s television programs are on contributory factor” (Hastings, par. 12). There is overwhelming evidence to the correlation of unhealthy foods advertising and adolescent obesity. There is an obvious need for strict regulation of fast food and a more accurate system that paints the “real picture” of the consequences of eating their products.

In most schools now children are only required to take one year of a Physical Education course. This means that only one year of their entire school career consists of them participating in vigorous fitness events. As a personal trainer I recommend that kids partake in at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day. Most children do not get even close to that and spend more time playing video games or watching television than playing sports in modern America which is the one of the biggest factors in child hood obesity.

I believe that there should be more mandatory physical education classes in schools, as well as Fitness Tests that require children to test their physical ability and health risks. These fitness tests could help school boards create menus at school of items that are much healthier, according to their schools fitness level.

4. HOW ARE THEY REACHING OUR CHILDREN???

The real question is how are Fast Food Restaurants having such an impact on our youth? The answer is through strategic placement of their facilities and shady marketing. Fast food restaurants are very particular to where they are positioned so that they can have the most effect on the population. The most common places, and dangerous, is for them to build around our school systems. High school and college students are easy prey for these fast food restraints because of time and convenience. Students are usually hurrying off somewhere and rarely have time to sit down and eat. These food chains allow them to grab a quick meal and be on their way in a matter of minutes. Although directly this may benefit the students because it is “easy”, it will ultimately cause and incredible amount of damage to them.

In a study hosted by Brennan Davis, “We found that students with fast-food restaurants near(within on half mile of) their schools (1) consumed fewer servings of fruits and vegetables, (2) consumed more servings of soda, and (3) were more likely to be overweight or obese than were youths whose schools were not near fast-food restaurants, after we controlled for student- and school-level characteristics” (5). I suggest that fast food restaurants should not be allowed by law to build infrastructures anywhere near (5 miles) a school or higher education center. Because of malicious practices like this more and more of our friends and families are seduced into eating these life threatening foods. Public Health states, “Exposure to poor quality food environments has important effects on adolescent eating patterns and overweight. Policy interventions limiting the proximity of fast food restaurants to schools could help reduce adolescent obesity” (Carpenter, par 7).

3. Shady Marketing?

An effective tool that Fast Food Restaurants use to trick the public is media corruption. Many of the commercials that they use to develop their products are very uplifting commercials that have no warning or foreshadowing of what will happen if you continue to eat there. They portray their customers as skinny, fit, and care free so to portray a false image of what is the truth. They plan these commercials strategically during shows that they know vulnerable people will watch, such as children watching cartoons. Children will believe nearly anything that they see on the television. According to Health, Risk & Society, “Food advertising during children’s television programs have been identified as one contributing factor to childhood obesity” (Mehta, par. 2). Because of shady advertising such as this, adolescent obesity has gone through the roof and is worse than ever before. Fattening foods such as these should not be allowed to advertise their products openly. Their products are killing many of our population and should be stopped as soon as possible. Instead healthy foods should be advertised to encourage healthy behavior as well as commercials that promote exercise. Udell argued,
that children were ‘vulnerable, impressionable, trusting and easy targets’. The role of advertising was to ‘seduce’ and ‘manipulate the watcher’. ‘Advertisements were described as aggressive, ruthless and full of cheap gimmicks’. Children were depicted as sitting ‘trance-like’ starring at television, ‘fed a diet of ads that put them under the spells of marketing techniques’. Advertising was portrayed as an ‘insidious force from which children have little protection’. The advertising industry was described as ‘unscrupulous’ and ‘giants’ who preyed on their audiences weakness and vulnerabilities. ‘This exploitation of children’ said on article is ‘deplorable.’ (Udell, par. 42)

These ruthless companies will prey on our young and corrupt their vulnerable minds. I propose that they should no longer be able to advertise products that may directly cause harm to the community with obesity or other serious health related issues. If fast food restaurants are causing harm to our nation, why have we not put a stop to it?

2. ATTACKING OUR YOUTH!

In the American population “almost one third of all youths now eat at fast-food restaurants on any given day” and “fast food consumption by 2 to 18 year-olds increased 5-fold from 1977 to 1995; by the latter year, fast food was consumed at 9% of eating occasions and comprised 12% of daily caloric intake” (Davis par. 1). Although these statistics are shocking, the real question is how are they having such an impact on our youth? The answer is through strategic placement of their facilities and shady marketing.
Children are the future of our country and as of now, they are falling into deeper and deeper danger every year as the Obesity count in adolescents rises.

1. Fast Food Restaurants: OUT OF CONTROL!

According to the National Association of Sports Medicine, “33% of America are obese and 66% are overweight” (NASM 237). The reason for the overwhelming number of obese peoples is because of unregulated calorie intake that is directly correlated to eating at fast food restaurants. Fast food restraints contain high fat, high calorie foods that usually contain more than three times the amount of calories that you should consume in a day! Many people choose to eat at these restaurants because of the convenience they offer. Obesity is growing at an uncontrollable rate and these food chains are to blame. If we ever want to put an end to obesity, which is the number one cause of death in America, than we need to regulate the power of these “death machines".