Background
White Castle, the first modern fast food chain began around 1917 with its introduction of the hamburger by J. Walter Anderson. The success of White Castle, which specialized in hamburgers, inspired regular men to start new businesses. These men believed in the "American Dream" and during the early part of the 20 th century they emulated Anderson's model and created other fast food restaurants. For example, Dunkin' Donuts was opened in 1948 by William Rosenberg, a high school dropout. Keith G. Cramer and his father-in-law Matthew Burns established Burger King in 1953. Harland Sanders created Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1952. The concept formed by White Castle proved to be reliable because many of these fast food restaurants exist 50 years later.
At the end of the 1940's, Richard and Maurice McDonald started one of the first successful fast food restaurants. After several attempts to maintain a thriving restaurant, the McDonald's determined that an innovative approach was crucial to attain their goals. These brothers revolutionized the restaurant business with their "Speedee Service System" which resembled a car assembly line for food where a worker was assigned one task. In this case, one worker would grill hamburgers and another worker would prepare milkshakes. To increase their service the only sandwiches served were cheeseburgers and hamburgers. There were many advantages to this type of restaurant operation. They were able to eliminate the use of plates, bowels and silverware by using paper products. They reduced the need for skilled employees because the worker had to complete one function. They also reduced food costs because the sandwiches and condiments were standard with no substitutions allowed. The assembly line blueprint continues to exist in McDonalds and other popular fast food restaurants. More importantly, the McDonald brothers created an institution, which permitted "working class families who could finally afford to feed their children restaurant food."7
The transformation to the McDonald's Corporation came from the ingenious idea and tenacious work of Ray Kroc whose philosophy of QSC and V (which means Quality, Service, Cleanliness, and Value) still guides the present corporation. Kroc was a high school dropout and a salesman who mastered the art of customer service. His expertise immensely impacted his success with the expansion of the McDonald's corporation. He understood the importance of what you sell and how you sell were an inseparable combination. Around 1955, Kroc convinced the McDonald brothers to sell him the rights to franchise McDonald's nationwide. It appears that many of his philosophical and design decisions were inspired by Walt Disney's ability to grasp children's imaginations with the Magic Kingdom theme park. Walt Disney created a unique environment for children to become immersed in a fantasy that they children wanted to repeatedly participate and duplicate. As a result, Kroc launched deliberate marketing strategies to implant the McDonald's fanciful vision in the minds of children through a variety of mechanisms. First, he created a safe clean, all-American place for children. The restaurant design consisted of bright colors, a playground, a toy, a clown, a drink with a straw, and a little piece of food wrapped like a present. Second, every restaurant was required to fly the stars and stripes. Third, in 1963 the mascot was changed from "Speedee" to "Ronald McDonald," which was introduced to the United States via an extensive marketing campaign. Lastly, McDonaldland was created for toddlers to generate life-long brand loyalty.
Although, several fast food restaurants started during this time period, the focus of the unit is to examine the McDonalds Corporation and its impact on fast food, specifically how it relates to childhood obesity. I selected McDonald's due to its dominance in the market and based on the monopoly of its system. There are many similarities emulated by other major fast food chains. The following statistics obtained from Fast Food Nation highlights how a single corporation can impact the world. The McDonald's corporation is responsible for 90% of the country's new jobs. In 1968 there were 1000 restaurants, as of 2001 there were approximately 30,000. According to the McDonald's Corporation website, as of January 2007, they continue to have more than 30,000 restaurants. This Corporation is the largest owner of retail property in the world. McDonald's is able to achieve this feat because they earn most of its profits from collecting rent not from selling foods. A new franchise owner leases the property from McDonald's at an approximate 40% mark-up with McDonald's holding the land title. They are the nation's largest purchaser of beef, pork, and potatoes, and the second largest purchaser of chicken. Consistent with the statistics noted above, McDonald's 2007 Annual Report highlights a 6.8% increase in global sales and $23 billion in total revenues. I found these statistics staggering and I think my students will be amazed to learn the market share control held by the McDonald's Corporation.
Obesity
Students need the following background information to fully understand the process of how an individual transitions from being overweight to an obese body. To generate student interest, especially for my visual learners, I plan to provide students with a general overview using a PowerPoint presentation. According to experts such as the National Institute of Health, obesity means having too much body fat whereas overweight means weighing too much.8 Due to the fact that the terms are often used interchangeably, it is important to explain the differences for student clarification. Obesity is a condition that occurs over time due to excessive eating. Initially, fat cells increase in size and when they can no longer expand, the cells increase in number. If we eat too much, the extra food turns to fat and is stored in our bodies. Basically, an obese person has a high amount of extra body fat because they have eaten more calories than energy exerted. On the other hand, an overweight person has extra body weight from muscle, bone, fat, and/or water.
The body mass index (BMI), which is based on height and weight, is one of the most common tools used to assess obesity and overweight for adults, teens, and children. According to The American Obesity Association, doctors consider a teen obese when his or her BMI number is higher than the BMI numbers of 95% of other teens from the same age and gender group. A teen is considered overweight if the BMI is between 85% and 95% of other teens.9
A 2005 Emedicine heath article reports that "obesity is an epidemic in the United States and in other developed countries. More than half of Americans are overweight, including at least 1 in 5 children. Obesity is on the rise in our society because food is abundant and physical activity is optional."10 An earlier survey completed by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in 1999 confirms the above results regarding the obesity problem. The prevalence of obese adolescents' ages 12-19 were documented at the 95 th % of the BMI for the following years: 1976 to 1980 equals 5%; 1988 to 1994 equals 11%; and 1999 to 2000 equals 15.5%. These results confirm the %age of obese adolescents has tripled over the past 25 years.11
Even though obesity affects all people, the percentage among ethnic groups is significantly higher. As Spurlock points out as of 2004 The Journal of the American Medical Association reported that 77 % of African-American women and 61 % of African-American men are overweight or obese. The Women's Health Information Center says that Mexican American women are 1.5 times likely to be obese than the general female population.12 The 2003 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that obesity can lead to diabetes. Also, one out of every three children born in America in 2000 will develop type 2 diabetes. Among African-American and Hispanic children, it's almost one out of two. These statistics support the need for nutrition education. Moreover, the majority of my students are African-American and any knowledge obtained from the unit can result in a positive and life altering healthy change.
Causes
In order for students to be proactive in supporting their own health, they need to know the factors that cause obesity. The National Institute of Health reports the following causes for obesity: energy balance, physical inactivity, environment, genes and family history, health conditions, medicines, emotional factors, and lack of sleep.13
One of the main causes that I will scrutinize throughout the unit is: What are we eating? Here's how Pollan explains the reasons for the obesity epidemic; "Since 1985 our calorie consumption has increased by approximately 300 calories."
Nearly a quarter of these additional calories come from added sugars (and most of that in the form of high-fructose corn syrup); roughly another quarter from added fat (most of is in the form of soybean oil); 46 % of them from grains (mostly refined; and the few calories left (8 %) from fruits and vegetables. Therefore, the bulk of the increase calories 93 % were in the form of sugars, fats, and most refined grains that supply lots of energy but very little nutrients. Students will analyze some of the causes and evaluate how it impacts their life.14
How do the causes translate into our everyday life? According to Pollan "We are snacking more and eating fewer meals together."15 Pollan's statement is supported by Harvard economists' calculations, the bulk of the calories we have added to our diet over the past twenty years have come in the form of snacks that do not include fruits and vegetables.16 How does this information correlate to what I observe in my classroom? It is seldom that students bring in fruits or vegetables. A typical lunch for my students includes the following foods: chips, sodas, "hug" (a cheap sugary drink), processed lunchmeat, candy, cookies, and pastries. Of course, students cannot be held accountable for a poor diet. If they are not conscious of the changes they can implement into their diet, how can we expect improvement? For that reason, I believe it is the educator's responsibility to guide them with practical advice.
Risk
Why is children's health at risk? They frequently consume large amounts of food items that are loaded with a high sugar, fat, and salt content. These poor nutritional practices impact children in a detrimental way. Children are bombarded with advertisements that solicit them through subliminal seduction, which illicits a desire to eat junk foods. Also, they drink excessive quantities of beverages that are loaded with sugar. Parents purchase the groceries and often children are not aware of or have not been exposed to alternative foods that are just as savory to the palate as the junk food. More importantly, their nutrient deficient diet can affect future medical problems as they age. Common medical problems that manifest due to obesity are heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, fatty liver, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and sleep apnea.
The types of foods that we eat which have attributed to inflating our risk factors in terms of obesity are referred to as "The Western Diet." Pollan defines this diet as one that includes "lots of processed foods and meat, lots of added fat and sugar, lots of everything except for vegetables, fruits, and whole grains."17 Processed foods have been deleted of nutrients and vitamins that are essential for good health. According to Pollan, people who eat the Western diet experience adverse side effects to their health such as substantially higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and obesity. Pollan also points out that the risk is greater for Hispanic or African-Americans. He goes on to reference Harvey Levenstein's contention that "the sheer abundance of food in America has fostered a culture of careless, perfunctory eating."18 The crisis can be further evidenced with data reported in Don't Eat This Book, in 2003 Americans spent a staggering $227 billion on medications.19
Prevention
The solution includes a concerted effort that involves the government, parents, and children. The government has the responsibility to regulate the food industry through proper and accurate product labeling specifically with regards to content requirements. Also, there is a need to regulate the type of advertisement geared toward children especially in economic depressed communities. The parent has the responsibility to implement a healthy diet in the home through education and awareness. The children have the responsibility to apply the information taught in school through such programs as "5 A Day" and incorporate these practices for future generations. The program encourages students to eat at least five fruits or vegetables per day. Students can launch the change by collecting data for the creation and implementation of a healthy food policy. Students can survey parents, teachers and classmates to solicit feedback on the vital healthy policy components. We all can generate change by adhering to Michael Pollan's common sense advice In Defense of Food "Eat food, Not too much. Mostly plants."20
Fast Food and Obesity
One of my goals when I teach this unit is to generate student excitement about discovering answers to the following question: How does fast food affect obesity? My initial research indicates that there are contrasting viewpoints. Some people argue that the "super size" phenomenon directly correlates to the obesity epidemic. As a result, advocates for this argument believe that fast food restaurants should be held liable for potential health problems. In contrast, others believe that we make a choice to eat fattening foods, consequently we are responsible. The research I will use supports the premise that fast food does impact obesity in children. A study completed by Yale researcher Kelly Brownell, PhD. was mentioned in a CBS news report entitled Fast Food Linked to Child Obesity with the following comment: "New study results bolster evidence that fast food contributes to increased calorie intake and obesity risk in children."21 In addition, researcher Shanthy A. Bowman, PhD supports Brownell's assertion in an article from WebMD entitled Fast Food Creates Fat Children; fats and sugars in fast food draw children like a magnet, largely they appeal to a child's "primordial" tastes. Children who ate fast food consumed more sugar-sweetened beverages, less milk and fewer fruits and nonstarchy vegetables.22
According to Eric Schlosser, the typical American consumes approximately three hamburgers and four orders of fries every week.23 What is frightening is that most fast food is delivered to the restaurant already frozen, canned, dehydrated, or freeze dried except for salad greens and tomatoes. In addition, McDonalds spend more money on advertising and marketing than any other brand. Fast food is heavily marketed to children. This growth occurred during the 1980s when major corporations' ultimate goal was to create current and future consumption by the way of brand loyalty. It has been documented that brand loyalty starts as early as 2 years old. The ability to persuade is validated with results from a survey of American school children that found 96% of them could identify Ronald McDonald. Various media marketing techniques used in television, radio, Internet, clothing, toys, and children clubs are used to entice consumers to buy more things. Pollen summarizes the impact of marketing influence on the American public; currently, $32 billion is spent on food marketing.24 Of course, food manufacturers gained significant income increases from public purchases. Pollan asserts that healthcare has benefited from the fast food industry because he estimates that the cost to society was $250 billion a year in diet related health costs.25
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