- Summarize Zinczenko’s arguments (his “I say”) against the practices of fast-food companies. How persuasive are these arguments?
Zinczenko argues that fast-food companies do not avail of other alternatives to the calorie- and fat-laden meals they serve and thus do not prominently show caloric and various information on the nutrition of their products. “Fast-food companies are marketing to children a product with proven health hazards and no warning labels,” Says Zinczenko. His arguments are persuasive because he gives a lot of information and facts based on his personal experiences as well as statistics regarding diabetes in adolescents implying that they are at high risk. After all, the numbers are growing fast. His reasoning is a good one indicating that the malpractices done by the restaurants trick consumers into taking many calories without their knowledge (Zinczenko, 2002). Zinczenko brings up the issue of Americans needing affordable meals, and that is what pulls them to these kinds of restaurants of fast foods.
- One important move in all good argumentative writing is to introduce voices raising possible objections to the position being argued-what this book calls naysayers. What objections does Zinczenko present, and how does he respond? Can you think of other complaints that he might have noted?
There are various objections Zinczenko introduces in his arguments at two different points. For example, in the first paragraph, he asks,” Whatever happened to personal responsibility?” and in section seven, he phrases his objection as a question “Shouldn’t we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast-food restaurants?” He points out that fast-food restaurants are “the only available options for an American kid to get an affordable meal.” He also notes that growing restaurants provided him with his dinner and lunch, and the case may apply to many Americans. I agree with him that restaurants provide horrible services, and I object that parents should put more efforts in supervising what their children eat and teach them good eating habits.
- How does the story that Zinczenko tells about his own experience in paragraphs 3 and 4 support or fail to support his argument? How could the same information be used to support an idea opposed to Zinczenko’s?
Zinczenko shows that he experienced the same predicament as the young people are experiencing at the moment, especially those who are using McDonald’s. He makes the readers sympathize with them by humanizing the problem he encountered as well as the young people. He notes that he did not have any other option but to choose fast-foods from restaurants since his parents had divorced, and that was the only affordable choice. In the two paragraphs, he depicts that he was able to manage his diet, although it can be used against his argument that young people should change their eating habits rather than blaming fast-food restaurants for their issues on weight.
- So what? Who cares? How does Zinczenko make clear to readers why his topic matters? Or, if he does not, how might he do so?
Zinczenko makes his topic matters clear and succeeds with it because most of the students will likely feel the clarity. He begins by noting the lawsuit against McDonald’s, an issue that got significant publicity. He then goes ahead to document the skyrocketing rates of childhood diabetes, and the costs of treating it went from $2.6 billion to $ 100 billion annually. He directly links them to obesity experienced by young people where type 2 diabetes accounts for approximately thirty percent of deaths, and thus fast-foods contain high sugars and calories. Moreover, he provides an eye-opening example in paragraph 9 regarding the staggering count of calories resulting from dietetic chicken salad offered by a particular company.
- Write an essay responding to Zinczenko, using your own experience and knowledge as part of your argument. You may agree, disagree, or both, but be sure to represent Zinczenko views near the beginning of your text, both summarizing and quoting from his arguments.
A string of lawsuits has gained prominence where parents are suing fast-food restaurants such as McDonald’s for health issues related to obesity and type 2 diabetes among young children in the United States of America. In David Zinczenko’s “Don’t blame the eater,” Zinczenko believes in individual responsibility in what one consumes, whether from a fast-food restaurant or not. However, the current situation in the United States implies that many young people cannot afford or locate healthy foods within their environment other than fast-foods restaurants. Besides, there are various regulations on nutrition information that the information must be included in the food packaging. The regulations help in availing information and make misinformation apparent to the consumers as they make their informed decisions about what they consume. The consequences of fast foods in the country have led to the increased cost of treatment of type 2 diabetes because of the drastic increase in obesity, thus a severe problem (Zinczenko, 2002). These consequences will continue to plague the U.S. now and in the future as far as the efforts of parents to sue the restaurants are concerned.
Zinczenko notes that he experienced the same predicament since he grew up in a situation where he had limited choices concerning his meals such as McDonald’s as well as Pizza Hut. McDonald’s has over 13 000 locations in the United States alone, which is a convenient option for many young people. Information about calorie amounts is rarely availed when the food is served, but when they provide, they make it hard to understand. For Example, David shows that a 310 calorie salad comes with packaging showing 280 calories per serving, making the meal look relatively healthy. However, most people do not realize that every packaging has 2.5 servings, which adds up to 770 calories. Therefore, Zinczenko describes how fast food companies contribute to extremely unhealthy foods as well as diseases that come with it.
Response
I agree with most of David Zinczenko’s arguments, and I find the recent suits by parents against fast-foods companies fascinating. His attempts to suggest that even though people may find this silly to them, they significantly part of the problem since the dire consequences will plague the country for several years ahead. However, I can’t entirely agree with him when links childhood obesity in America to fast-food companies, lack of physical activity can contribute to obesity. The companies are out with a primary focus on selling their products and make vast amounts of profits. However, he is right when he pinpoints that childhood obesity as a significant problem in America, which is associated with calories ingested. Also, I agree with him that calorie labels are difficult to understand or indicate a lower value of calories. As a result, many young people eat more calories than recommended. Fast-food has become more easily and readily available meal, thus more appealing and hard to avoid. I have experience with fast foods; I often myself eating fast foods because of my tight schedule, so I don’t get time to cook for myself a healthy meal. I prefer stopping by the nearest restaurant to take my meals, and that would save me from wasting time. Fast foods are cheap, quick, and available everywhere.
Most of the students in the United States of America live hectic and engaging lives, such as hanging out with friends, jobs, studies, and jobs. Thus they hardly get time to cook healthy foods for themselves. They also do not have money to buy more nutritious foods, which are often expensive because they are still young have little money, hence often opt for cheaper unhealthy foods. However, fast food companies should not be blamed because their focus is on profits; parents and their children should take full responsibility for their health (Ashcroft). Parents should consider taking full control of the diet of their children hence influencing them to live a healthier life. Also, fast-foods companies should consider healthy options for preparing meals with lower calories as well as providing genuine information regarding the number of calories on the packing materials.
In summation, collective responsibility will contribute to healthy living among young people and all Americans in the country. However, fast food companies should be blamed for increased unhealthy habits and should find ways of promoting a healthier lifestyle. They should avoid providing vague and misleading nutrition labels regarding the number of Calories per meal served. Therefore, both parents and fast-foods companies should put their efforts together to attain healthy lifestyles among Americans.
