In recent years, the phrase “Fast food is the new tobacco” became very common. Although being widespread, this expression raises a lot of questions. For example, why fast food is called as something bad, knowing that it saves people a lot of time? Or, conversely, why the popularity of fast food does not reduce if so many people know about its harm? This paper deals with this issue in order to find out why fast food causes the same strong dependence as the tobacco does.
At first glance, there is nothing bad in the fact that food has become “fast”. Moreover, fast food means not only a rapid consumption, but also the rapid preparation and lower price, which significantly reduces the time and expenditures. In fact, fast food was invented to save people`s time on eating and preparing food (Zhong and DeVoe 622). In fact, there is nothing bad in visiting fast food places from time to time. It is really a way out, when there is no other option to satisfy a huge hunger.
However, there are some significant drawbacks, which can not be forgotten. It is no secret that fast food causes a physiological dependence. No one pounces like a madman on the cooked carrots, but potato chips cause the desire to eat more. The scheme is simple. When the first piece of potato chips (or any other "fast and delicious food") enters the mouth, the pleasure centers in the brain flash brighter than a Christmas tree. Manufacturers know that people do not stop until they eat everything until the end. As a result, 20% of fast food fans consume 80% of all production. These 20% of people are those who are already "on the needle" and they need more and more.
It is important to say that the human receptors are prone to addiction to different tastes. As a result, people eat a huge amount of sweet and salty foods every day because their taste buds have become numb. Therefore, if the product contains a reasonable amount of sugar and spice, it seems too bland or even tasteless.
Another negative aspect of fast food is sugar. Almost every product contains sugar: Coca Cola, dressings and biscuits at McDonalds` burgers, seasoning for potatoes and so on. Sugar is everywhere. Even if the product does not seem sweet, it is likely to contain something that will turn to sugar as soon people eat it. This is called fast carbohydrates. Fast carbohydrates are any foods with a high glycemic index, which quickly turn into glucose and residual elements, and cause an insulin spike in the body. This may be anything that contains flour, sugar, potato starch.
Any addiction has both physiological and psychological aspects. Physiological causes have been described above. And the psychological side is going to be described here. The taste becomes a more affordable way to get pleasure than other methods. In fact, not a lot of effort is required to feel pleasure of a desirable food`s taste. Another, more effective methods of joy, such as sport or an interesting hobby, firstly require effort, which often seems «too hard» for people. As a result, given that human life is stressful and people really need to get happy emotions, they return to the tasty fast food more often.
And if it was just about eating, it would not be as scary as diabetes and obesity, which affects not only adults, but also more and more children. Childhood cases of diabetes two grow, as well as costs spent on its treatment and prevention. And the cause is obvious. As David Zinchenko aptly notes, it is many times easier to find a fast food restaurant than a place where to buy grapefruit (Zinchenko 196). The lack of accessible alternatives makes people eat at fast food restaurants more often.
Very often, eating of fast food is simply the cheapest option to eat. The scale of fast food production is so large that such economies of scale allows them to reduce the prices. David Zinchenko, the author of the article "Do not Blame the Eater" mentions how he, as a schoolboy, on a daily basis used to choose between McDonalds, Pizza Hut and other fast food options, which were available for an American child (Zinchenko 195). Of course, this resulted in a large number of tallow in his body, but he managed to get rid of it thanks to the healthy lifestyle magazine. However, not all people find enough inner strength to change their habits and give up fast food. Many people are simply not aware of how to manage their diet properly. In most occasions people eat until they feel something between saturation and satiety. As a result, a person eats more than is necessary and then requires more food than ever before. It's no secret that the fast food contains a lot of flavor enhancers, seasonings, which are not present in normal food. As a result, the human receptors get used to these tastes and common food ceases to be tasty.
A very important aspect in the spread of fast food and the human dependence on it is about children. It is said that he entire business model of the major fast food producers is based on the idea to raise people`s dependency on food since their childhood (Robinson et al. 792). This is beneficial when children eat a lot because they will need and want more and more when get older. Attentive consumers might notice that fast food manufacturers of products regularly make special emphasis on children. Their goal is to establish a connection between the brand and the sense of happiness in the child`s mind. For example, if parents buy Happy Meal, the child receives a toy, enjoys the taste of food and receives a splash of happiness. When these children turn into adults and feel a lack of joy or some kind of stress, they are more likely to visit McDonald's (for example) and to get the same dose of happiness with the help of fast food, as it was in childhood. In fact, everything that evokes positive emotions in childhood, is fixed in the brain as "something good." And later, when people get older, they continue to eat this food, even knowing that it is harmful.
Summing up, it is necessary to say that the fast food really has similar effects on people as tobacco does. Dependence on fast food exists due to its taste, successful advertising, perfect marketing policy and the absence of alternatives. All these factors lead to an increase of people who visit fast food restaurants not for having a quick meal, but to get positive emotions. And this effect looks very similar to the one, which tobacco has. Along with the popularity of fast food, the number of patients with diabetes and obesity is also increasing, as well as the amount of the cost of treatment of such patients. It would be better to direct resources to rising people`s awareness and intelligence about the effect, which fast food has on them. However, for now it is more like a dream than reality.
Works Cited
Robinson, Thomas N., et al. "Effects of fast food branding on young children's taste preferences." Archives of pediatrics & adolescent medicine 161.8 (2007): 792-797.
Zhong, Chen-Bo, and Sanford E. DeVoe. "You Are How You Eat Fast Food and Impatience." Psychological Science 21.5 (2010): 619-622.
Zinczenko, David. "Don’t Blame the Eater." They Say I Say. Ed. Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein. WW Norton, 2006.
