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ORIGINAL: Archer

. Mom ran us ot of the house for a reason so we would get outside and get some exercise was a secondary reason of course, her peace and quiet always seemed to be the first priority, and tierd out physicly we were far less a problem to deal with.

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ORIGINAL: seeksfemslave

While I agree that information about healthy anything or everything should be available I dont agree with the coercion that general purpose do gooders wish to inflict on others, naturally for the recipients own good. This has reached its height in the nasty SADISTIC messages printed on cigarette packets.

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ORIGINAL: michaelGA2

i would love fries, but nowadays, everywhere i go, they serve "lazy man's" potatoes...this means that more and more places are going to serving unpeeled potatoes...and that's something i cannot stand, so i rarely ever order fries anymore.

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ORIGINAL: ownedgirlie

I recently summarized an article on pandemic obesity and how fast food plays a part.  A post in another thread reminded me of it and I thought I'd share it here.  How many of you eat fast food, and how often?

It was amazing to learn the incredible influence advertisers have over the American diet.  It always seemed obvious that marketing and advertising have influences over consumers, but to actually see the correlation of advertising dollars spent on a set of fast food chains and those same chains rendering top sales was quite interesting.

It was also fascinating, yet disconcerting, to learn that there is one fast food restaurant for every 1,000 people.  That is incredible!  The author joked that there may be more fast food establishments than churches, but he may be right!  It seems as though advertisers are nudging us along to become more and more obese, more and more unhealthy, all in the name of money.  And while capitalism should flourish in this country, there seems something very wrong with that picture.


Here is the summary:

          Pandemic Obesity, by James E. Tillotson, PhD, MBA, presents a compelling urge for his readers to become aware of our nation’s relationship with fast food chains, and the advertising which stands behind it.  There are currently more overweight than underweight people in this country.  While the 1990s passed the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act to set food label standards, more people eat fast food now, which does not require any labeling standards at all.  Consumers are not getting the information they need to make informed choices regarding fast food.  Advertising Age published a summary of the Top 20 Megabrands in 2002, ranking US dollars spent on advertising.  12% of those brands were food brands and over a third of those were fast foods, drink, bread and snack products.  These food products add to the high calorie diets eaten by Americans already suffering from obesity.  What’s more, advertisers can use any means they can get past the FTC in order to reach consumers. 

          The author’s own research showed, to no surprise, that 6 of the leading fast food chains were linked to the top advertising dollars spent on fast food megabrands.  These 6 fast food chains spend $1.68 billion in advertising a year, and reap $50 billion a year in sales.  To demonstrate effectiveness in their advertising, a 2003 study showed that of the top 20 most remembered television commercials, 8 of them were for fast food chains.  What influence advertising has on this country’s diet!  Lack of required nutritional labeling for such a highly consumed product does nothing to help consumers understand what they are eating.  74% of meals dined out are in fast food chains.  There is 1 fast food outlet for every 1,000 Americans!  This has doubled since 1980.  Keeping in mind the advertisers influence on our diet, the convenience and taste of this food, and the availability to purchase this food at nearly every hour of the day, these chains are catering to what consumers want.  Advertisers have at their hands, big dollars to bring in big names to represent their corporate customers.  How can we fight back?  Consumers, after all, are choosing to eat this food, even though they are fast becoming aware of their connection to weight problems.  Americans don’t want to be told what to eat.  90% of Americans feel they are responsible for their own weight issues.  Many questions are raised about this issue and most go unanswered.  There is no easy answer to the huge and growing obesity problem in this nation.  Health professionals, nutritionists, and even government, does not have the collective will to come up with creative solutions to this problem.  The question remains, do we allow this problem to correct itself through “creative destruction,” or does the government step in with funded policies to influence our diets?  The author strives to motivate his readers by asking thought provoking questions, in the hopes that we will become affected enough to want to work toward change.  While his article is compelling, it will take great effort to do so.