Fast Food Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Fast Food - Research Paper Example In effect, people want to â€Å"grab a bite† quickly and go back to their activities. In this case, individuals eat food prepared and served quickly in packaged form at outlets known as â€Å"take away† because it is convenient. In effect, it has become a common occurrence to find mothers bring home packed food to their children as their dinner. In this regard, the country, and the world to some extent, experiences a culture whereby fast foods are the order of the day in most households. While fast foods have created employment and business opportunities all over the world, there is a growing criticism on negative health effects of consuming fast foods especially in the American society. First, the patterns of food consumption have greatly changed in the world and especially in America. One of these changes is on the rise in consumption and purchasing of fast foods in America. Jekanowski, Binkley, and Eales noted, â€Å"In 1997, food away from home accounted for about 45% of total food expenditures, up from approximately 26% in 1960† (58). In this case, food away from home is fast foods that most Americans consider convenient due to their busy lives. In addition, it is common knowledge that the female participation in the labor market is steadily rising each year. Traditionally, it is the role of women to prepare food at home. Therefore, more females joining the labor force implies that the household time is decreasing as more women are seeking employment. In effect, the convenience of fast foods and the decreasing household time are the two fundamental reasons that have pushed the consumption and expenditure on fast food upwards. The U.S. Department of Agriculture noted, â€Å"From 1982 to 2003, expenditure on fast food in the U.S. raised from $26.5 billion to $126.7 billion-an annual rate of growth of 6.4%, over 2% higher than the growth rate of at home food consumption (qtd. in Richards, Patterson, and Hamilton 425). In effect, this imp lies that more and more Americans spent a lot of money to consume fast foods, which meant that they cut on spending on the traditional home foods due to the convenience of the fast foods and increasing participation of women in the labor market. On the other hand, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention at the same time noted, â€Å"The percentage of consumers regarded as obese more than doubled, rising from roughly 14% to 30%† (qtd. in Richards, Patterson, and Hamilton 425). Nevertheless, it is important to point out that there are various causes of obesity, which implies that fast food is not the only cause. However, Chou, Grossman, and Saffer regarded the consumption of fast foods as the fundamental reason behind the rise in the levels of diabetes and obesity in the country (qtd. in Richards, Patterson, and Hamilton 425). A 2005 study by the University of Minnesota â€Å"found a direct link between eating fast food and the development of type 2 diabetes (qtd. in H. O’Keefe and J O’Keefe 38). In effect, this explains the rising cases of diabetes amongst the citizens of American. In addition, the study further noted â€Å"people who consumed fast foods two or more times a week were typically ten pounds heavier than those who ate fast food less than once a week† (qtd. in H. O’Keefe and J O’Keefe 38). In effect, the implication of heavily relying on fast foods amongst Americans is an overweight society, which effectively leads to obesity and puts an individual at risk of diseases such as hypertension. However, the study identified a more