Fast Food Nation and Super Size Me proved to us how much many North Americans depend on fast food for their diets. Countless studies have shown that over the years, there is a definite correlation between obesity rates and the amount of fast food consumed. It can be safely assumed that it’s a simple formula: fast food + obesity = lethal link. The dependence on a quick bite coupled with limited exercise and outdoor activities caused by the massive amounts of technology keeping us glued to our TV, computers, iPhones and so on, we have become an obese continent. We have become inactive by our attachments to modern technology such as televisions, computers, iPhones and so on. We have actually neglected the other things around our homes such as the refrigerator, stove and oven. They collect dust. We have become dependent on convenience. How did this happen? We even have an entire network dedicated to food… called The Food Network… great name eh? We easily sit there for one hour and watch Gordon Ramsay, Rachel Ray and Jamie Oliver create these delectable dishes for us yet after this hour of sitting there on the couch starving, we are too lazy to create these dishes. Instead we nuke something, hit up drive-thru, order pizza, it’s all too easy.
Here are some American facts on how convenient fast food is in the US:
- At least twenty school districts in the US have their own Subway franchises; an additional 1,500 districts have Subway contracts; and nine operate Subway sandwich carts.
- Taco Bell sells products in about 4,500 school cafeterias. Pizza Hut, Domino’s Pizza and McDonald’s are now selling food in US schools. The American School Food Service estimates that about 30 percent of the public high schools in the US offer branded fast food.
- Elementary schools in Fort Collins, Colorado now serve food from Pizza Hut, McDonald’s and Subway on special lunch days. “We try to be more like the fast food places where these kids are hanging out” a Colorado school administrator told the Denver Post. “We want kids to think school lunch is a cool thing, the cafeteria a cool place, that we’re with it.
I am certain that the Heart Attack Grill in Chandler, Arizona, isn’t hleping the obesity crisis very much either. Their menu includes:
- the ”Single”, “Double”, “Triple”, and “Quadruple Bypass” hamburgers,ranging from 0.5 to 2 lb of beef (and up to about 8000 calories!)
- “Flatliner Fries” (cooked in pure lard)
- unfiltered cigarettes
- beer and liquor
- soft drinks such as Jolt cola and Mexican Coke which is made with real sugar.
Customers over 350 lbs eat for free if they weigh in with a doctor or nurse (their staff dressed up as doctors or nurses) before each burger.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not just North America (mostly the USA – sorry), but this link can be found elsewhere since the 1980 fast food culture boom. In Japan and China, many abandoned the traditionally healthy diets for food served by the fast food chains. Recently things have begun to change as we have started to lean towards a healthier lifestyle. Big Mac’s are no longer promoted by a red headed clown in Asia, but rather a slimmer girl in a bikini promotes their healthier options. And yes, I know, many chains are altering their menus and changing their ingredients but still many are chowing down their super size fries and extra large fountain sodas. In fact, look at this brand new burger that has just come out in the UK: The Super Scooby Burger from the Jolly Fryer in Bristol stands 6 inches tall, weighs more than 3 pounds and is a whopping 2,700 calories! It includes 4 quarter-pound beef patties, 12 onion rings, 8 slices of bacon, 8 slices of cheese, 6 slices of tomato, 2 sesame buns, barbecue sauce, lettuce, and a good slathering of mayonnaise. If you can finish it, you get a free diet coke!
Here are some global facts:
- In Australia, where the number of fast food restaurants roughly tripled during the 1990s, a survey found that half of the nation’s 9 and 10 year olds thought that Ronald McDonald knew what kids should eat.
- At a primary school in Beijing, it was found that all of the children recognized the image of Ronald McDonald, saying that “… he understood children’s hearts.” Coca-Cola is now the favorite drink amongst Chinese children, and McDonald’s serves their favorite food.
- Germany is now one of McDonald’s most profitable overseas markets, with more than a thousand restaurants. “The Golden Arches have become so commonplace in Germany that they seem almost invisible,”.
Some countries never got as hefty as others. French people really don’t get fat. I read the book. Of course, it’s not true for every Parisian out there but they do eat fresh foods, walk everywhere and smoke to keep their weight down. Okay, maybe not the latter, but they understand their ingredients and now what is put into every dish. How many people out there know how many calories in a Big Mac? 540. Add your large fries, which is 500 and now your, uh, let’s go with a medium Coke which is another 210. You have got yourself a 1250 calorie meal. Mmm….. So nutritious too!
So why all the fast food? Well, there are over 13,000 McDonald’s in the US alone. That’s approximately 1 for every 23,000 Americans. The map below shows how far apart these 13,000 restaurants really are. You can be anywhere in the USA and you are never more than 145 miles away from the nearest McDonald’s.
Anyone up for fast food now? How about hot dogs?
No thank you, I prefer slow food and real meat.
Until next time…
