Kai Relf February 24, 2014 Period 2

Why is Junk & Fast Food Addictive?

“Can we please stop and go get McDonald’s?” Children, teenagers and adults are constantly asking this question. Fast and junk food are two addicting types of food that has society in the horrible state it’s in now. Fast food is food that can be prepared quickly and can be sold easily. Junk food is food that has low nutritional value and is labeled as unhealthy. It is normally sold in packaging and needs little to no preparation. I honestly think that junk and fast food is addictive because it is constantly being advertised and sticking to people’s minds, we start to get attached at a young age, and the way the food is presented to us.

Advertisements are a key concept in the succession of a junk and fast food industry. To advertise means to draw attention to a product or service in a public medium in order to promote sales or attendance. Television and social media are two ways that the public views these ads. On average we see about 3,000 to 20,000 advertisements per day, half of them are for fast or junk food. Majority of the ads are designed to attract younger children and teenagers. They use things that are popular and common to attract people’s attention. The more they persuade with these popular figures the more we are entertaining these companies. For example. Fast food restaurants advertise toys that come with a kid’s meal. But the toy isn’t any average toy; the toy is based upon a popular new movie that came out or favorite TV show character. The kids beg their parents to bring them to get the toy and a new comes out the next week. So what does that mean? Right, they have to get the new toy . . . at some point it becomes an addiction.

Another major reason that junk food and fast food is addicting is that we are introduced to it at such a young age. At the age of five children are able to understand what they like and don’t like. Well, most parents don’t have time to sit and cook for their child or children. (Betsch) As a result they take their child/children to a fast food restaurant or they buy junk food for them. The kids get attached to the food and basically grow up on unhealthy, processed food. That’s why they don’t like eating fruits and vegetables; they are addicted to eating chicken nuggets and salty French fries. When kids are younger they are in love with sweets and sugary things. That’s why when they go to pick out their favorite junk food it has their favorite character or is attracted to the colors on the packaging. So from then and on they are accustomed to buying that, they become naturally hooked to it. It is almost like a drug . . . but for kids.

All food is not appealing but