|
Would You Like Fries With That?
"We need to face the fact that fast food is jeopardizing our health and when the calories and the pounds start adding up, you know that it’s time to take a bite out of the food industry and put in its place."
By Hannah Efron
Fast food is a main source of American’s diet, depleting access to nutritional needs. Youth Radio’s Hannah Efron speaks to why this industry is so harmful and suggests alternatives to depending on a fast food diet.
How many times a day are you asked if you would like fries with your order? Once? Twice? Three times? A big mac and a coke, although a classic American meal, weighs in at seven hundred twenty-two calories. Don’t forget everyone’s favorite fries.
This makes the grand total for just one meal, one thousand two hundred thirty-five calories.
This number is just shy of what the average person needs to eat daily. But first, let’s back it up. That’s not saying that if we only eat one meal a day and it’s the mac and coke combo, that we’ll lose weight, or even be healthy.
This meal is choc full of things our body doesn’t need, like one thousand three hundred forty grams of sodium and lacking things we do need such as protein, vitamin C and other nutrients in foods no on the dollar menu.
I think the main problem with fast food is the accessibility. Fast food is cheap and you can buy heart attacks around every corner. You can sit down, take it in your car, or on the road. If you’re down in Pacifica and have sandy feet from the beach, you can still satisfy your Taco Bell cravings with their convenient windows for order.
These fat factories are in the middle of nowhere and they’re in big cities, they’re from coast to coast and beyond.
We need to face the fact that fast food is jeopardizing our health and when the calories and the pounds start adding up, you know that it’s time to take a bite out of the food industry and put in its place. It takes as much time to walk into a supermarket and buy a pre-made box of sushi (which are pretty good) as it does to wait in line at your favorite fast food chain.
Another alternative is exercise! Going for a run or a swim or a bike ride can burn the calories you eat when you have fast food. It’s an easy solution if you enjoy the accessibility and the taste, but don’t want to go on the artery-clogging rollercoaster.
If fast food is a must, due to time constraints (it’s hard to have time in a work day or even on weekends to exercise,) shoot for the salad on the menu. There are ways around fast food and I think if we try, we could just be a fitter, thinner country.
|
|
