Obesity is a disease that plagues America’s old and young more than any other country in the world. Despite efforts to resolve this issue from the communities affected, and by local, state, and federal government this epidemic has yet to come to an end. The most common solutions offered to address the obesity epidemic are ones derived from an economic and dietary approach. Although seemingly worthy solution are commonly agreed upon, however pinpointing an incontestable culprit guilty for this monstrosity cannot be so easily done. Over the years the fight against obesity has come at an ever-growing monetary and health care expense. As a result local, state, and federal government officials have stepped in to offer solutions to fight this disease.
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Some suggest that if healthier food choices and more nutrient information were available to consumers of fast-food then one could fight obesity more effectively. In his essay Zinczenko challenges readers by instructing them to “take a drive down any thoroughfare in America and I guarantee that you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants” (392). Zinczenko believes that the lack of healthy and easily accessible alternatives contribute to the obesity epidemic. Zinczenko then makes the argument that some food labeling is misleading about the product by stating that “Complicating the lack of alternatives is the lack of information about what exactly, we’re consuming. There are no calorie information charts on fast-food packaging, the way there are on grocery items. Advertisements don’t carry warning the way tobacco ads do. Prepared foods aren’t covered under Food And Drug Administration labeling laws” (393). It is not only Zinczenko who has taken notice of the faulty food labeling of the fast food industry. Radley Balko states that “Congress is now considering menu-labeling legislation, which would force restaurants to send every menu item to the laboratory for nutritional testing” (396). The thinking behind polices like these is that if consumers are more aware of exactly what they’re consuming while eating fast-food, one could prevent the consumption of ingredients that cause unwanted …show more content…
When it comes to obesity in America, this saying couldn’t hold truer. When trying to figure out who or what is to blame for this epidemic no one can accurately do so. Zinczenko seems to believe that the blame should be placed on the Fast-food giants who spend “$1 billion” each year on advertising (393). Zinczenko also believes that the industry is “vulnerable”, stating that Fast-food companies market to children a product that is proven health hazardous and one having no warning labels (393). Zinczenko believes that if this type of marketing strategy continues there will be “more sick, obese children and more angry, litigious parents” (393). On the contrary, Balko has a different theory on who to blame and why. Balko suggests that “the best way to alleviate the obesity “public Health” crisis is to remove obesity from the realm of public health” (397). Balko continues by suggesting that personal health remains private and should be less of a public matter because it is not of the public’s concern with what one decides to put in his or her body (397). Balko further justifies these statements by saying that “If policymakers want to fight obesity, they’ll halt the creeping socialization of medicine, and move to return individual Americans’ ownership of their own health and well-being back to individual Americans” (397). So it would seem that Balko believes that the only one who should be
Some suggest that if healthier food choices and more nutrient information were available to consumers of fast-food then one could fight obesity more effectively. In his essay Zinczenko challenges readers by instructing them to “take a drive down any thoroughfare in America and I guarantee that you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants” (392). Zinczenko believes that the lack of healthy and easily accessible alternatives contribute to the obesity epidemic. Zinczenko then makes the argument that some food labeling is misleading about the product by stating that “Complicating the lack of alternatives is the lack of information about what exactly, we’re consuming. There are no calorie information charts on fast-food packaging, the way there are on grocery items. Advertisements don’t carry warning the way tobacco ads do. Prepared foods aren’t covered under Food And Drug Administration labeling laws” (393). It is not only Zinczenko who has taken notice of the faulty food labeling of the fast food industry. Radley Balko states that “Congress is now considering menu-labeling legislation, which would force restaurants to send every menu item to the laboratory for nutritional testing” (396). The thinking behind polices like these is that if consumers are more aware of exactly what they’re consuming while eating fast-food, one could prevent the consumption of ingredients that cause unwanted …show more content…
When it comes to obesity in America, this saying couldn’t hold truer. When trying to figure out who or what is to blame for this epidemic no one can accurately do so. Zinczenko seems to believe that the blame should be placed on the Fast-food giants who spend “$1 billion” each year on advertising (393). Zinczenko also believes that the industry is “vulnerable”, stating that Fast-food companies market to children a product that is proven health hazardous and one having no warning labels (393). Zinczenko believes that if this type of marketing strategy continues there will be “more sick, obese children and more angry, litigious parents” (393). On the contrary, Balko has a different theory on who to blame and why. Balko suggests that “the best way to alleviate the obesity “public Health” crisis is to remove obesity from the realm of public health” (397). Balko continues by suggesting that personal health remains private and should be less of a public matter because it is not of the public’s concern with what one decides to put in his or her body (397). Balko further justifies these statements by saying that “If policymakers want to fight obesity, they’ll halt the creeping socialization of medicine, and move to return individual Americans’ ownership of their own health and well-being back to individual Americans” (397). So it would seem that Balko believes that the only one who should be