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The FAT-Food Industry:

Is Fast Food the New Tobacco?

At first there was just a hamburger, bun and an ice cold soda. Now there are super-sizes,
extra cheese, bacon, and one state law regulating how large your soda can be. When it comes to
the fast food industry or how I refer to it, the fat food industry; the question arises if the highcalorie fat- packed foods are becoming the new tobacco. Consider baseball, Americas favorite
past time, although fast-food is nearing the top, to be right up there with baseball and in some
cases a stress reliever? We the people have certain rights and responsibities but where do we
draw the line to help escape a lifetime of obesity. Jared Morison, a co-worker of mine, shared a
prime example of how fast-food is becoming the new tobacco. Morison explained how he was
just arriving home from work to find gallons of water dispersed throughout his condo. In his own
words, I was so frustrated and mad I just HAD to go get a double cheeseburger and some fries.
Granted not every American is the same but I imagine this is a common scenario for most. The
following is a compilation of health related articles specifically based around Americas bad
eating habits which are followed by a brief analysis of each article and how I can use them in
issue summary paper about how fast food is becoming the new tobacco.
Maxfield, Mary. "Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating."
Missmarymax.wordpress.com. Wordpress.com, n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2012.

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In her essay Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating, Mary Maxfield
(2010) , a famous blogger insists most wont go for the healthy foods if we are taught to eat like
the Western diet has taught us. Maxfield states Trust yourself. Trust your body. Meet your
needs.(p. 446) What Maxfield is saying is that it should be common sense how to eat healthy.
This relates directly to Pollans three rules. Trusting yourself to eat food, dont overeat and dont
under eat. Trust your body and if you notice your pants are starting to not fit, and are sure its not
a growth spurt then I claim that there is something wrong with your diet. Meet your needs. If you
are a marathon runner, eat like one.
Maxfield is a credible source because of her degree in creative social change which she
received graduating in December 2010, from Fontbonne University. Maxfield has an extremely
popular blog along with minors in sociology, American culture studies, and womens and gender
studies. She appeals to the audiences shared sense of values when she says The problem is that
our understanding of health is as bases in culture as it is in fact. In my point of view Maxfield is
saying we have as much fact about eating healthy as we do common sense, hinting that
Americans dont know much when it comes to healthy eating habits. Maxfields tone if of
seriousness and this is expressed by her concern, numerous references and facts she states. Her
essay will help support and answer my question, is fast-food the new tobacco?

Pollan, Michael. "Escape from the Western Diet." Style Weekly. N.P., Apr. 2009. Web. 11
Nov. 2012. <http://www.styleweekly.com/richmond/escape-from-the-western-diet/Content?
oid=1370632>.

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When it comes to the issue of the Western diet, Michael Pollan, author of six books,
agrees that diet shouldnt be about the science, counting this nutrient and avoiding that nutrient.
In his essay, Escape from the Western Diet, Pollan reports that the science of nutrition is
focusing on specific nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids and carbohydrates and that this only
satisfies our hunger for a simple, one-nutrient explanation. What Pollan means is that an
explanation of a single nutrient isnt going to change the Western diet or how Americans eat.
Pollan claims that all the science behind avoiding the Western diet and the illnesses the Western
may cause is simply done by not eating the Western diet and cutting down on processed foods.
He proposes three rules to avoid the Western diet. Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
Pollans aim is to persuade the audience that knowing the scientific breakdown of
nutrients isnt going to help you avoid the Western diet and Americas bad eating habits. His
claim is to eat food, not much and mostly plants. Pollan is a credible source because first of all
he is an author of six books and second he was named one of Time magazines top 100 Most
Influential People in 2010.

Warner, Judith. "Junking Junk Food." New York Times Magazine 2010
In her essay, Junking Junk Food, first published in the New York Times Magazine in
2010, editor and author Judith Warner argues that the dozens and dozens of cookies Sarah
Palin brought to what Palin calls a school cookie ban was wrong in all the right ways. Warner
suggests that Palin may have used the cookies just as an opportunity, which ended up changing
Pennsylvanias idea of finding substitutions for high-sugar sweets, into what Warner Calls an
Assault of the American way of life. In the point that the state wanted to get rid of such treats,

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but with the act of Palins cookies they quickly had a change of mind. Judith Warners aim is to
persuade the audience that we as Americans need to change the view of eating unhealthy as in
the same way tobacco changed from being viewed as cool and sexy.
Warner realizes how big the issue is and that is her motivation for the piece. Hence the
essay is set within its historical context, which is the year 2010. Thus the issue is of national
concern because we the people of America all have a part in the epidemic of obesity.
Warners credibility relates to the fact that her essay was published in the New York Times
Magazine. Her intended audience is general public as well as upper middle class; we know this
because of the articles publication in the New York Times Magazine. Warner appeals to the
audiences shared sense of values when she makes the claim that two-thirds of adults in
American are fat as well as the 17 percent of kids and teens.

Zinczenko, David. "Dont Blame the Eater." New York Times 23 Nov. 2002
In the article Dont Blame the Eater David Zinczenko argues that it is not the kids or
the eater to blame for obesity but the actual fast-food industry. Zinczenko is motivated to write
this piece because he was once an obese child and lacked such parental guidance towards healthy
eating. Its nearly common sense that you shouldnt eat more than two meals a day from a fastfood restaurant. Most Americans do not grasp this concept. Zinczenko points out that there are
not many other alternatives. Suggesting it is rather easy to find a fast-food joint, but when you
try and find a place to buy a grape fruit the pickings is slim to none.

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The essay is of national concern because we (Americans) are experiencing an obesity

epidemic. Zinczenko has credibility because he is the editor-in-chief of Mens Health magazine
and the author of numerous best-selling books. He is an expert on this subject because his books
"Eat this, Not that" and the "Abs Diet" series are directed towards healthy lifestyles. Also his
personal experience of being overweight puts him in the same shoes as Americans.
This article was first published in the New York Times, which targets the general public
and upper middle class seeking information. Zinczenko appeals to the audiences shared sense of
values when he says that, new cases of type two diabetes are on the rise, more concern for the
accessibility of fast-food should be addressed. As the fast-food industry markets directly to
children, more law suits should be expected. Consider the reasons being that the fast-food
industry doesnt provide sufficient nutritional value information as well as very high-calorie
meals. Their advertisements do not warn the consumer that they can and will cause obesity.
Zinczenko says this will cause the children to have a life time of obesity.
Overall, the author persuades by presenting facts that correlate with his own personal
experiences of being overweight. Zinczenko has affected my thinking about fast-food being the
new tobacco by revealing facts about how fat Americans are; his position relates to mine on a
personal level because I was once an overweight child as he was.
In conclusion these articles provide a variety of facts and examples of how the fast-food
industry is becoming the new tobacco. Also how the poor eating habits of Americans are at their
worst. Considering the rise in diabetes and heart disease as well as the number of adults and
children who are obese, I still feel there are some biased opinions on the subject. Common sense

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would say that the majority of Americans do eat poorly in comparison to the number of people
who follow healthy diets.