Karly+L’s+2017+OpEd+Article

When you Google "food," the first few things that pop up on the screen are a list of local restaurants, some healthy recipes for home-cooked meals that take hours to make, and some images of pizza, doughnuts, and burgers. It seems like this is exactly what the three options are: wait for someone to cook an expensive meal for you at a decent restaurant in town, test your luck and skills with a time-consuming recipe that might actually be healthy and taste good- if you're lucky- or go to a drive through for the quickest, cheapest, greasiest and most disappointing bite of your life.

The fast food industry is one of the vilest things in our society. Our current food industries- including factory-farming systems and mass production of government subsidized crops- are causing strain to the environment and health of the animals, contributing to the deaths and illnesses of people who consume the meat, and increases the gap of quality of life between classes in the United States. The problem is that it thrives because of our culture. Jobs and families demand time and attention. Cheap food that requires almost no time or energy would be ideal for the consumer if not for the fact that the consumer is not eating the food; the food is eating us, from the inside out. Fats clog our arteries and sugars rot our teeth and strain out blood vessels. The CDC names heart disease as the number one killer in America, taking 614,348 lives in 2014. Heart diseases like hypertension (high blood pressure) heart attacks and strokes are becoming more and more common. The percentage of obese children in the USA has, according to the CDC, more than tripled since the 1970s. Keep in mind that the U.S. population has increased by about 50% since 1970, therefore the total number of obese children has increased drastically. Why? Because of the diets of these children.

Kids are easily swayed in decision-making. Colorful toys, shiny wrapping and cute animals are usually enough to convince even a well behaved child. Fast food restaurants like McDonald's build their marketing tactics around this idea. They display their plush and plastic Happy Meal toys at the front counter and feature characters from popular new Disney movies in commercials and as merchandise to lure children in. After all, young addicts stay addicts all their lives.

The human body is naturally programmed to seek out three components in food: salt, sugar, and fat. Watching an order being made across the counter of any fast food restaurant and you will see all three being slathered, dished, and topped onto the food. These three ingredients, sugar especially, are nearly addictive. Young and old, everyone enjoys the taste. Children are guaranteed to eat their meal, which is difficult to achieve if the plate is heaped with chicken and broccoli. My sister, only five years old, almost never finishes her dinner at home. However, I don’t remember her ever turning down a McDonald’s chicken nugget. Add guaranteed edibility plus the fact that the food is cheap and fast and it’s no wonder parents give in to their kids’ pleas.

The fast food industry is driven by money, as all industries are. Clothing, computers, and car companies all compete to be the cheapest, fastest, most stylish brand around. Capitalism, theoretically, drives quality up and price down. The food industry is not the same. Clothing and cars can be passed down and old or borrowed electronics used. Food, however, needs to be produced and consumed by everyone everyday. Quality and health are compromised for speed and prices driven down by using immoral or illegal methods. Chickens, cows, and pigs are fed corn and antibiotics, increasing the amount of medicine-resistant bacteria like E. Coli. that can kill humans that consume the meat. There have been several cases of this, including an incident where a young boy died from a type of E. Coli. bacteria from meat. Stress, lack of exercise, and living in their own muck causes illness in the farm animals that can be passed to humans. The fast food industry causes viral, bacterial, and chronic illnesses in the human consumers and mostly affects poorer demographics of populations. After all, how many millionaires have been spotted in a Carl’s Jr.? Those who can afford it buy food that is organic, grass-fed and antibiotic-free. Those who cannot settle for quick and easy drive-throughs. The rich get free-range and the poor get free refills. //recipes//