In “Don’t Blame the Eater”, David Zinczenko advocates for the obese teenager’s plight by placing blame on the fast food companies. He describes his sympathies by giving a glimpse into his own story as a once obese teenager and claims that it is the companies lack of disclosure and warning and a lack of alternatives, not the parents lack of presence or teenagers’ self control, that is causing obesity. Though I agree with Zinczenko to a point, I can’t help but think that his position is too simple. Of course fast food can make you fat; we didn’t need him to tell us that, but obviously there is more behind the obesity epidemic. Zinczenko only comments on a lack of alternatives and a lack of disclosure from companies, expertly excusing personal
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They’re framed in Wendy’s, on napkins and cups in Subway, and on the menu board at Panera. However, obesity is still on the rise and the curve is exponential. It’s not the fact that this information needed to be seen, which of course it did; it’s the fact that people don’t understand what those numbers mean. They feel like they’re eating healthier because it sounds healthier “light” or “fit” meals, but fail to realize the vast amount of calories they plugging into their bodies. I know many people who believe that as long as something is “healthy” calories don’t matter. For example, a friend looked at a reduced calorie Naked smoothie, a smoothie brand known for using only 100% fruit with no sugar added, and asked why 100% fruit needed to be reduced calorie. Reduced calorie Naked is made with coconut water as the base instead of fruit juices. Because 100% fruit juices sound healthy, many people drink them regularly. However, they fail to realize that they’re basically drinking calorie concentrate. There are typically about 2 apples in a cup of apple juice, but none of the fiber and fillers that are in the apple. After eating two apples, most might feel pretty full, but …show more content…
He blithely tosses in a comment that he assumes many readers are thinking “Shouldn’t we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast-food restaurants? That’s one argument.” But though that may be “one argument”, it’s definitely a legitimate one. Should we not be responsible for having at least a basic understanding of what we put into our bodies? And beyond that, wouldn’t be the job of the parents, really the first teachers of any child, to be the ones to explain it? Zinczenko mentions early in his article being a “typical mid-1980s latchkey kid”, but fails to expound on how that fact, more than a lack of alternatives and information, could be a determining factor behind his childhood obesity. If there was a mother at home to cook food, or even parents to mention that maybe the child shouldn’t eat out as much as he or she does, there could be a window of opportunity, a crack in the wall of the obesity epidemic. As it is, children are left to eat what looks good to them, which, of course, is the sugary processed goodness they see on television. Maybe there’s a place to buy a grapefruit on the thoroughfares of America, but can it compete with the 5 color preservative spread of Capt’n Crunch’s Oops All Berries
They’re framed in Wendy’s, on napkins and cups in Subway, and on the menu board at Panera. However, obesity is still on the rise and the curve is exponential. It’s not the fact that this information needed to be seen, which of course it did; it’s the fact that people don’t understand what those numbers mean. They feel like they’re eating healthier because it sounds healthier “light” or “fit” meals, but fail to realize the vast amount of calories they plugging into their bodies. I know many people who believe that as long as something is “healthy” calories don’t matter. For example, a friend looked at a reduced calorie Naked smoothie, a smoothie brand known for using only 100% fruit with no sugar added, and asked why 100% fruit needed to be reduced calorie. Reduced calorie Naked is made with coconut water as the base instead of fruit juices. Because 100% fruit juices sound healthy, many people drink them regularly. However, they fail to realize that they’re basically drinking calorie concentrate. There are typically about 2 apples in a cup of apple juice, but none of the fiber and fillers that are in the apple. After eating two apples, most might feel pretty full, but …show more content…
He blithely tosses in a comment that he assumes many readers are thinking “Shouldn’t we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast-food restaurants? That’s one argument.” But though that may be “one argument”, it’s definitely a legitimate one. Should we not be responsible for having at least a basic understanding of what we put into our bodies? And beyond that, wouldn’t be the job of the parents, really the first teachers of any child, to be the ones to explain it? Zinczenko mentions early in his article being a “typical mid-1980s latchkey kid”, but fails to expound on how that fact, more than a lack of alternatives and information, could be a determining factor behind his childhood obesity. If there was a mother at home to cook food, or even parents to mention that maybe the child shouldn’t eat out as much as he or she does, there could be a window of opportunity, a crack in the wall of the obesity epidemic. As it is, children are left to eat what looks good to them, which, of course, is the sugary processed goodness they see on television. Maybe there’s a place to buy a grapefruit on the thoroughfares of America, but can it compete with the 5 color preservative spread of Capt’n Crunch’s Oops All Berries