ResearchDocument

ESSAY
The topic of fast food is a debatable one that has often been
brought up on a regular basis. It is common knowledge that both
adults and children are governed by the fast food industry including
adolescents in recent times. Obesity is on the rise and all of this
points up to the evident rise in volatile statistics and facts that have
been presented over the course of ten years. One cannot overlook
the fact that there has been an increase the desire for junk food
followed by its production resulting in highly negative results.
Child obesity has started to become a growing concern today.
Looking at the existing facts on this growing universal concern,
there has been a rise in obesity amongst children, shooting up to
double the amount in them and quadruple in adolescents. In 2012,
around one-third of the children were deemed overweight and the
percentage of children who were obese in the United States alone
rose from seven to eighteen percent. (Anonymous, April 24 2015)
UK based statistics show that it is the highest rate of child obesity
in Western Europe today. (Briggs, Helen, 13 June 2013). It has also
been addressed recently, linking it with multiple kinds of illnesses
along with other conditions such as diabetes, breathing problems
etc.
A particularly skilled team from the Imperial College of London
analyzed the statistics on the NHS admissions for obesity, focusing
on hospitals in London and Wales primarily. (Briggs, Helen, 13 June
2013) They discovered that there was a steady increase in the
admissions from girls, which also turned out to be higher than boys.
Meanwhile the obesity surgery cases rose marginally from one case
in 2000 to 31 cases in 2009, being mostly girls. From all that has
been looked at, this is a prevailing problem faced by not only in the
UK and US, but also by every country all across the globe.
There are also several reasons as to why children eat the way they
do, some of them being poor food selection, lack of time, which
results in meal skipping, fussy eating amongst toddlers and children
etc. According to the findings posted in the National Nutrition
Survey of 1995, around 40 percent of children ate no fruit, thirty
percent ate no vegetable and seventy five percent ate mashed
potatoes, which were fried and added with fat. To add on, eighty
percent ate pastries, cakes and biscuits, seventy percent drank fruit
juices and only twenty percent of them drank water.
The fast food industry is the only one to be blamed for this
mostly. The existing statistics of 2013 say that in that year the
industry was worth 191 billion dollars in the United States itself.
(Forte, Gregory. (August 2014)) From the analysis of
(Promoting Healthy Eating For Children: A Planning Guide
For
 Practitioners, July 2005)
these statistics, it has been predicted that it will be worth
around 210 billion dollars by 2018. They have used the power
of marketing and advertising wisely, to their advantage to create
a global impact. The most commonly used strategy is the
one, which involves the use of incentivizing children with a toy
if they buy a happy meal. This in turn grooms a kid into coming
regularly to a fast food restaurant to pick up the next toy that
comes out along with the happy meal.
In recent years, celebrities have been getting behind the
camera to promote junk food for various fast food companies.
Recently, the campaign taken up by Michelle Obama, which
aimed at reducing child obesity, created a huge controversy.
The fact that she signed on celebrities like Beyoncé and Shaquille
O’Neill to promote the campaign created a huge stir as
they have endorsed sodas in the past, which are contributors
to the rising obesity epidemic. (Sifferlin, Alexandra, 2013)
Beyoncé endorsing Pepsi back in 2013
Celebrities serve as role models, which clearly results in behavioral
change in kids based on what they endorse. According to
scientists, ads featuring professional athletes get an impressive
number of views and exposure on TV, the radio etc. In 2010, it
was also noticed that children between the ages of twelve and
seventeen saw more food and beverages endorsed by athletes
compared to adults. (Sifferlin, Alexandra, 2013)
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