A survey carried out in 2012 indicated that up to 52% of the people do not know how to feed on a healthy diet. In addition, out of every 4 people, at least 1 feed on fast food in a day. Majority disregards the nutritional content of the food as well as the right potions leading to some mild effects and sometimes very critical health challenges. Some of the mostly used fast foods include fries, burgers, pizza, Chicken wraps, and sodas, among others. The issues of fast food are so critical in USA such that it made the first lady Michelle Obama to start a campaign “let’s move” aimed at reducing childhood obesity. What are some of the negative effects of fast foods?
According to arabnews (2012), the fast food has contributed to the increasing number of overweight teens in many parts of the world. Fast foods have very high calories and sugars that make the people gain weight very fast. In fact, even considerably small amounts may have profound effects on health of the person since they can alter the amounts of fat in the body greatly. As the availability of fast foods increase, one gets used to eating the fast food instead of other healthy food. Well known characters are used in the marketing to attract children to eat the fast foods (Sara Ipatenco, n.d). Such habits replace healthy eating habits that are less attractive or are not as promoted as the fast foods. For example, in America, one in every three children and teens is obese due to the effects of fast foods while in the UK. About 64% of the adults are classified as obese or weight.
Excess body fats from fast foods increase the risk of getting various diseases tremendously. It is said that those who use fast foods are four or more time prone to heart disease. Obesity is close associated with type 2 diabetes (Muniza ali, 2003). Such happens because the Trans fats found in the fast foods clogs the arteries over time that can lead to heart attacks. The fast foods may also increase the stress levels in an individual. The stress leads to peptic ulcers as more acid is produced in the stomach. For example, Up to 90% of the obese people in Arab have type-2 diabetes and Up to 50% die of cardiovascular diseases all of which are associated with fast foods.
Fast foods come with serious economic constraints directly or indirectly. The health care facilities are stretched due to the increasing health related disease. Due to this, the government has to invest more on the healthcare facilities than before. In addition, fast foods cost higher than home-made foods. For example, an average American uses about 1,200 dollars on fast foods alone. The obesity cases have increased the healthcare spending by $301 in America.
In conclusion, there are many negative effects of fast foods on the health of the people. As indicated above, the fast foods lead to obesity which comes with other related negative effects. It is a fact that fast food increases the chances of getting heart disease, diabetes type 2, peptic ulcers, and even stress all of which have economic implication in the long run, such as increasing healthcare spending. In addition, fast foods cost more man more than the home-made foods. The homemade foods have the essential nutrients required by the body. It is up to parents and individuals to mind what they eat since it affects their health and economic status.
Work cited
Arabnews. “Overweight teenagers,” 2012. Accessed From http://www.arabnews.com/overweight-teenagers on November 9, 2014.
Sara Ipatenco. “What Attracts Kids to Fast Food?” n.d. Accessed from http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/attracts-kids-fast-food-1589.html on November 9, 2014.
Muniza ali. Lifestyle Changes May Contribute to Declining Health. 2003. Accessed from http://www.arabnews.com/node/229291 on November 9, 2014.
