Is Fast Food the New Tobacco?

                                  Is Fast Food the New Tobacco?

 

Normally you would present both the good and the bad sides off a topic but when it comes to Fast Food there is only negatives. In my opinion, Fast food is the new tobacco in many ways starting off with fast food being addictive. In the passage, “The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing” by Gerald Graff the author emphasized “Then as now, these are the only options for an American kid to get an affordable meal”. As a college student in the 20^th century, I can confirm this is still true. Most meals found in my area can cost from nothing less than 25$ and up. There is not in between, meals are either junk food or really expensive top of the line food that most lower-class kids can’t buy. Furthermore, in the article it states, “Only about 5 percent of childhood cases were obesity-related, Today, according to the National Institutes of Health, Type 2 diabetes accounts for at least 30% of all new childhood cases”. Since this passage was published in 2006 this percentage has only gotten higher thru the years. In addition, Gerald states that “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that diabetes accounted for 2.6 billion in health care cost in 1969. Today’s number is an unbelievable 100 billion a year. 

In my opinion the obesity issue should be government regulated but only for people that us in risk of getting diabetes or has it. In the article “What You Eat is Your Business” by Radley Balko the author states “President Bush already marked 200$ million In his budget for anti-obesity measures” meaning a step was made when bush was elected but actions weren’t made. Furthermore, the author stated 

“State legislatures and school boards across the country have begun banning snacks and soda from school campuses and vending machines”. Meaning actions again were taken but a big push to derive these junk foods hasn’t been made. I make this statement because I have visited most schools in New jersey before attending college and they all had vending machines full of junk food. While on the other hand, some people like Radley Crook differ stating “This is the wrong way to fight obesity, instead of manipulating or intervening in the array of food option available to American consumers, our government ought to be working to foster a sense of responsibility in and ownership of our own health and well-being”. I disagree with this statement because that is what the American society has been doing allowing people to have responsibility on what they eat but that hasn’t changed anything. Almost a third our society is facing obesity and diabetes because of the leeway that has been given to them for century’s. In conclusion, in my opinion I feel that this obesity issue should be governmentally regulated because clearly the majority of obese and diabetic people either can’t stop from eating junk food or don’t have the funds to clear up their diet.