VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS EDUCATION
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READING ASSIGNMENT
Students name: PHAM THI NHAN Class: 09E20

Hanoi, Thursday November 25th , 2010

I. TABLE OF CONTENT

Part I. Table of content II. References III. Main reading text IV. Summary V. Reflection VI. Other reading texts II. REFERENCES

Page 2 2 3 8 8 10

Hansen, J. American Children Eating Fast Food Leads to Health Problems. Retrieved November 9, 2010, from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/13227/american_children_eating_fast_food .html Crystal, D. The link between fast food and health problems. Retrieved November 9, 2010, from http://www.helium.com/items/827764-the-link-between-fast-food-andhealth-problems?page=1,2 What Affect Does Fast Food Have on Our Health? Retrieved November 9, 2010, from http://www.fastfoodnation.co.uk/what-affect-does-fast-food-have-ourhealth.html Why fast food makes you get fat. Retrieved November 9, 2010, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3210750.stm

III. MAIN READING TEXT (total words 2712)

American Children Eating Fast Food Leads to Health Problems

Published November 10, 2005 by: Jenna Hansen Michaels dad wanted to do something special for his son. Michael had just gotten a straight A report card and it was a special occasion in the house. The family did not often go to fast food restaurants; Michaels mom knew that fast food was not the best as a diet for her child. His dad thought it would be okay as a treat, so he drove through Jack in the Box and got three burgers. Michael thought the meat was a bit red, but his dad told him it was fine. Later that night, Michaels parents had horrible stomach pains. By morning they had passed. They had been in too much pain to check on Michael. In the morning, he did not come downstairs. They went up to check on him. He was holding his stomach in pain and his bed sheets were covered in bloody diarrhea. His parents quickly rushed him to the hospital. But it was too late. Michael had a heart attack on the way to the hospital and died. The doctors ruled that this had been a case of E. coli O157:H7 food poisoning. An innocent childs life lost, due to one hamburger. Many Americans now eat fast food. It is popular in todays culture. According to Eric Schlosser, the typical American now consumes approximately three hamburgers and four orders of French fries every week (Schlosser 6). Many of those Americans consuming fast food are children. In one USDA study, Thirty percent of American children were found to eat fast food on a typical day (Nitzke). This much consumption of such unhealthy food causes health problems. People who eat fast food are more likely to become overweight or even obese. Heart disease and cancer rates for fast food consumers are higher. Those who eat fast food are more likely to develop diabetes. Fast food is not proper nutrition in any sense. The consumption of so much fast food is hurting all Americans. Endangering Our Future Generation A fast food diet in children can lead to many health problems. Such a diet is low in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and essential oils. This type of diet will lead to malnutrition in Americas children. A diet consisting of such amounts of fast food as we see in todays children will lead to immune deficiency, high cholesterol, and diseases showing up at an earlier age than we used to see (Crabtree). So many children are eating too much fast food that soon we may start seeing epidemics of heart disease, osteoporosis, and other diseases linked to fast food. Being malnourished also stunts growth and makes it harder for those affected to concentrate. A child who is constantly tired at school is not going to be able to learn as much. However, there are more than just long-term effects that children can be affected with. Food poisoning is more likely to kill children than adults. It is easy to get food poisoning today, 7.5 percent of the ground beef samples taken at processing plants were contaminated with Salmonella, 11.7 percent were contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, 30 percent were contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus, and 53.3
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percent were contaminated with Clostridium perfringens (Schlosser 197). The death by food poisoning is not a pleasant way to die. Those infected with E. coli O157:H7 have severe cramping and bloody diarrhea. If the child lives through the experience, they may have permanent brain damage and damage of other organs as well. Clearly, the children are highly impacted by the decision to eat some fast food. It is important to focus on the health of the nations children because these children will become adults. Those under twelve years old are considered children. Such a large age group of unhealthy people will result in problems for the generation in the future. If our people are not healthy, society cannot accomplish much. It does not reflect a good image of our nation when such problems are preventable through a simple diet change and we still have these problems. As fast food consumption has increased, so have the obesity rates in the United States; today The rate of obesity among American children is twice as high as it was in the late 1970s (Schlosser 240). With such high rates of obesity, health problems increase. Those who are obese as children also have a hard time losing the weight as adults. Due to choices they made as children, these people have a high chance of remaining obese forever. Do we really want to be known around the world as the fattest nation? If the nation overall were healthier, perhaps we could all be more productive. Without spending so much of our money and time on these preventable diseases, we could make more progress. And no parent should have to watch their child die of food poisoning or other preventable illnesses. No child should have to have his future ruined by brain damage from the food poisoning. No child deserves lifelong health consequences from decisions he made before he could have known the dangers of fast food. We must protect the children of this nation, as they cannot protect. There are many causes to the problem of childrens health being adversely affected by fast food. The industry is greedy; they are only concerned with profits, not health. This industry generates an enormous amount of revenue from children. They advertise to children so that the children will beg their parents to take them to the fast food places. The children then bring in their families, which generates the profit. Another cause is that fast food is mostly unhealthy. The few healthy choices are not items that children would eat. Yet all this unhealthy food is damaging their health and the industry knows it. Another problem is the way that fast food is processed. Food poisoning is easily transferred. The food is not cooked in such ways as to make it the healthiest it can be either. I interviewed a former Burger King employee who worked at Burger King for 10 months to see what the cooking procedures were like. I wanted to find out if there were any safety measures in place to make sure the meat was properly cooked. Angie told me, they didn't check every single patty, but it seemed they checked them a few times a day to be sure the broiler was cooking hot enough. Plus many of the burgers were microwaved as well. That was around the time that Jack in the Box had that big E. Coli breakout (Smith). She quit working at Burger King when she was eight months pregnant with her first child. Smith does not often feed her children fast food. Yet not all adults, much less children, know much about fast food. Since the advertising is directed at children who do not have all the facts, they
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have a hard time resisting temptation to eat such unhealthy food, not realizing that it is unhealthy. Children do not realize they are being manipulated by their fuzzy mascot idols. There is also a lack of adequate nutritional education in the schools. The information is often outdated and even supplied by the industry. We cant expect the industry to tell kids not to eat their products. Of course, nutritional information packets supplied by McDonalds are not going to be based on facts. Why would McDonalds tell children that fast food really isnt good nutrition? This is one case where the free educational materials are definitely not what are best for the children. Only once we recognize these causes will we be able to solve this problem. Fast food companies started out trying to attract families. They did not want the teenage customers that drive-ins had attracted. A way of attracting the families was to lure in the children. When McDonalds wanted to be more like Disneyland and build an attraction, they built small Playlands and McDonaldlands all over the United States (Schlosser 42). Colorful playgrounds, toys, clown these are all ways to attract children. What child would not nag their parents to eat at a place with so much excitement? No child is going to choose a healthy restaurant over one with toys in the meal. A single mom that I interviewed by email spoke of her childs consistent technique in nagging for fast food: Derrick loves to go to a particular restaurant just for the toy they have in the meal. Hell call me in the car on the way home from work and say that he just saw a commercial and there is a toy at BK that he just HAS to have. It's very frustrating (Kadet). Kadet knew it was bad for the health of her child to feed him fast food, but the convenience after a long day of work coupled with the whining from her child for fast food usually made her cave in and buy it. Many parents do the same. In order to protect our nations children, three solutions need to be put into place. We need to have healthier fast food options made available, which taste like something children would actually eat. Advertising directed at children needs to be stopped, unless it is encouraging them to choose the healthier options. Adequate nutritional information in schools needs to be ensured. With these solutions, we may have hope for the future. It is important to have healthier foods available at fast food places. This way it is just as convenient to eat healthy. In order for a meal to be considered fast food, it only needs to be prepared and served quickly. Fast food does not need to be unhealthy; it only needs to be convenient. Many parents only feed their children fast food instead of home-cooked meals due to convenience. I interviewed single mother who is a hotel worker by email to see why her family often ate fast food: I take my kids to fast food restaurants because I am too tired to cook after working all night, and trying to do the rest of my chores on 3 hours of sleep during the day. I try to take them somewhere that has a choice of a salad, and try for stuff that might be better like chicken Mcnuggets, or a grilled chicken salad. I dont like to take them there all the time, but sometimes I am just too tired to slap two pieces of bologna together! It is easier to go through a drive through and pick up something, then stand in a kitchen making a mess and getting pots and pans dirty, washing dishes, and cleaning it all up. Sometimes it is just not worth it! (Kibler). Sometimes Kiblers three children get excellent home-cooked meals, when she has the time to make them. Even knowing the fast food is not good for her children, the convenience is too great to avoid taking them there.
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However, if companies made healthier options for children, many parents like Kibler would pick out the healthier options for their family. The companies then cannot claim that they do not profit from the children if they can still market healthy foods to children. These new healthy choices need to be foods that children would actually enjoy. This will help to teach children about healthy living. Advertising directed at children needs to be stopped. Several organizations that have the childrens best interests at heart agree. Children cannot make informed decisions on their health, and therefore do not realize that are being manipulated. These advertisements encourage a lifelong cycle of bad eating habits. The children cannot distinguish facts in commercials from marketing techniques. Commercials targeted at children do not need to provide truthful information to be believed: McDonalds, the multi-national hamburger chain, has spent many millions of dollars on an advertising campaign targeted at youngsters that presents a rather unique version of reality. Obviously feeling that little things like the truth are unimportant when talking to children, they have produced a series of commercials in which a lovable clown named Ronald McDonald tells his impressionable young audience that hamburgers grow in hamburger patches (Robbins 129). Many children believe Ronald McDonald cannot lie. These children may truly believe that fast food is good for you. Without having the proper judgmental skills developed, these children are put at risk by such commercials. The third part of this solution is to make nutritional education in schools fun and accurate. Instill the information needed in children to have lifelong healthy eating habits. The industry should not be allowed to supply the educational materials. Companies do not have an interest in bettering the health of the nations children. When Companies provide educational packets to schools, [they] generally include a heavy dose of advertising (Johnson, Wallace, and Stuart-Simmons). Children get bombarded with enough advertising simply watching television; they do not need to be subject to advertisements at school as well. Now let us compare these solutions to discover which is best. If children are educated, they might be better equipped to evaluate advertisements and pick healthier foods. If there is no advertising for fast food restaurants directed at children, the industry will lose a lot of profits. If there are healthier foods sold at fast food restaurants anyway, eating there would not affect childrens health in a negative way. It seems that education is the best solution. Those who are informed about the dangers of fast food do not eat it. Those who are educated can evaluate advertisements; they can know when they are being misled. Education plants the seeds of knowledge to have healthy eating habits. This will give children the information they need to choose healthy foods for the rest of their lives. However, there is not only one solution. Not everyone would have access to this education in time to save them from the dangers of fast food. Children younger than school aged eat fast food as well, yet they will not receive education about nutrition, nor would they understand it if they did. This is why education cannot be the sole solution. These solutions must all be implemented for the plan to work. First, advertisements
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directed at children must stop. No more children should learn to desire fast food. This will force the industry to change if they cannot advertise unhealthy food. Next healthy foods need to be made available at the fast food restaurants. Busy parents can then still buy fast food for their children. The industry can also then still make a profit as long as they can come up with healthy fast food that tastes good. With help from the flavor companies, it would be possible to create good tasting healthy fast food. Lastly, educational programs must be put into place. Since the unhealthy options will still be available, children need to know how to choose what to eat. This will help the children grow up to be customers that are more informed. Children can learn the dangers of long-term fast food consumption, as well as the immediate dangers to them, such as food poisoning. As Michaels classmates sat quietly in the rows at the church at his funeral, they thought about what a great friend he was. He never got into fights at school, he wasnt a troublemaker, and he did his best at everything he did. Michael was always telling his classmates about good nutrition and his mom made him the best lunches. He would often share his lunches just to be a good guy. Yet now their friend was gone, all because of some undercooked hamburger meat. His father wept as he thought of how this special occasion had gone so horribly wrong. He blamed himself for having thought just one hamburger could not hurt, just a rare fast food meal would be okay. His mother was weeping as well, as she felt she did not get to the hospital soon enough and should have done more to save her son. Michael died a wrongful death; no child deserved to die in such a horrible way. If nothing is done about the current problems with fast food however, many more children may suffer the same fate as poor Michael did and die at the hands of the fast food industry.

IV. SUMMARY (total words 90)

Many Americans, especially American children now eat fast food. However, fast food is not proper nutrition and fast food is contaminated by many strains of bacteria and viruses in
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producing process. That explains why the consumption of so much fast food can lead to many health problems: malnutrition, heart diseases, and osteoporosis. To ensure our childrens health, there are three necessary solutions such as making healthy fast food available in fast food restaurants, stopping the direct fast food advertisement on children, and educating about nutrition for them in their schools.

V. REFLECTION (total words 735)

The article American Children Eating Fast Food Leads to Health Problems is very informative and worth reading. It is about the fast food disadvantages affect on American childrens health. The author wants to raise awareness among American parents about the hidden danger from fast food. The article is well structured and the texts organization pattern is problem solving. Firstly, the author shows us some health diseases relating to fast food. Secondly, she gives us the secret of fast food chains manufacture and the reason why children want to eat fast food. Lastly, she suggests three solutions to protect children health from unhealthy fast food. I am very impressed by the way the author informs the problem. She gives a story about poor Michael who died of eating undercooked hamburger meat. This opening attracts the readers very much. The readers feel curious to find out the bad effects of fast food. Then she moves smoothly to the topic, throughout this article the author always declares that eating so much fast food is not good Fast food is not proper nutrition in any sense. The consumption of so much fast food is hurting all Americans. To support her argument, she implies many diseases from fast food such as heart disease, obesity, osteoporosis, malnutrition, etc... In addition, she quotes many opinions of famous authors study like Mr. Crabtree, Mr.Schlosser, Mr. Nitzke, and Mr. Smith to clarify that problem more carefully. She employs the food contamination statistics from Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal (Eric Schlosser, 2001). Eric Schlosser is the most famous American fast food researcher so I think that the statistics is trustful. Next, the author tells us why the fast food is dangerous but still being preferable. She finds out how safe the manufacture is from a former Burger King employee, Angie. There is definitely no safety measure in that place to ensure the quality of product. That evidence is very convincing because Angie is the voice comes from inside fast food industry. Furthermore, we know their marketing strategy. Because their target customers are children so they attracts them by advertisement, colorful playgrounds then the children will nag their parents to eat fast food. Besides, the parents sometimes are to busy to cook the meals so they take their kids to fast food restaurants, we find such details through Kiblers family. After that, the author gives three detailed solutions for the fast food problem, I think that the author puts her heart on this article; she truly cares about American childrens health. I collected three more articles about fast food; they also claim fast
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food is not good for health. The first two article explain us carefully about many diseases from fast food not only raise the name of diseases. The third article has variety researchers opinion but all of the articles do not have real comprehensive solutions like in main article (except the first one, there is a recommendation about nutrition education and setting up parental examples for children to follow). In term of languages, the author uses strong, emotional language to state her idea such as Do we really want to be known around the world as the fastest nation?, We must protect the children of this nation., and This is why education cannot be the sole solution. All the authors opinions are presented by a clear and understandable language; therefore, though this text is nearly 3000 words we still are not tired when reading. The author transits flexibly among ideas and paragraphs by various cause- effect phrases and transition words such as therefore, because, since, due to, result in, however. Through this text, I know many new words diarrhea, obesity, malnutrition, osteoporosis, cramping, manipulate, nag, cave in, bombard Thanks to this text, I can learn the way to write problem solving text not only concise, logic but also effective and persuasive by employing stories, statistics. It is indeed very useful. In addition, I know that fast food results in many diseases not only obesity as I known before. We should not eat so much fast food. I am obsessed by the mourning Michael family situation in the end of the text. As the author says If nothing is done about the current problems with fast food however, many more children may suffer the same fate as poor Michael did and die at the hand of the fast food industry.

VI.

OTHER READING TEXTS

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1. Text 1:

The link between fast food and health problems

by Dawn Crystal Fast food, we are finally starting to realize, is linked to many health problems in children and adults nationwide. Obesity is a national epidemic in the United States and much of the concern over obesity is related to our fast-food culture and sedentary lifestyles. In the past 20 years, the fast-food industry has continually increased serving sizes and focused much of its advertising on our youth and teenagers, contributing to life-long unhealthy nutritional habits. As an example of the changing world of fast food chains, when McDonald's first opened, a soda was 7 ounces. Today, the child size is 12 ounces, a small is 16 ounces, and the large size soda is a whopping 32 ounces! Talk about super-sizing! OBESITY The most common link between fast food and health problems is the obesity epidemic sweeping the nation. It is no secret that fast food companies use high fat meats in their meals. Beef that is high in fat is cheaper, but it also contains more trans and saturated fats that leaner cuts of meat do not contain. Along with lower quality meats and high amounts of oil and grease, fast food restaurants are currently making their portion sizes bigger than ever. Modern technology allows potatoes used for French fries to be produced quicker and cheaper than in the past; however, it also means that fast food companies only need to charge a few extra cents to "super size" a meal, while still making a pretty profit. Unfortunately, that is not good for America's health. Lastly, the portion sizes at fast food restaurants in the U.S. are even bigger than the same exact meal in different countries. And we wonder why we have the fastest growing waistline in the world! LACKING IN THE FOUR MAJOR FOOD GROUPS Fast food is typically associated with high fat, high carbohydrate foods and has limited inclusion of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. Fast food is usually prepared with saturated oil and the oil is typically reused many times, making it more vulnerable to bacteria and spoilage. Hot dogs, hamburger, French fries, fried chicken nuggets, and similar foods are high in fat and calories. The four major food groups are not represented in the fast food world and this contributes to the obesity and overall poor health of Americans. HEART DISEASE Heart disease has long been associated with unhealthy weight ranges, so of course with the ever-growing obesity epidemic, we are also suffering a bout of heart disease and other heart-related illnesses. Fast food restaurants use massive amounts of oil and grease to quickly cook anything from French fries to apple pies to chicken nuggets. These artery-clogging oils make it harder for our hearts to work and pump blood properly. Of course, the occasional fast food meal will not pollute your arteries, however, it is important for us to limit our fast food intake in order to maintain a healthy heart. FOOD POISONING A USDA study reported that 78% of today's beef that is used in the fast food industry contains fecal matter. If that doesn't kill your appetite I don't know what will. On top of
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that, slaughterhouse plants must still use humans to do all the work, rather than machines. Chickens are now able to be slaughtered with machines because they are able to be bred relatively the same size; however, cows still come in all shapes and sizes. With humans doing all the work, there is a large margin for error and contamination. Not to mention, many of the plants hire illegal immigrants to do the work because they are cheap labor, and are willing to work long hours every day. FAST FOOD SPREADING As fast food chain restaurants have spread across the world, they have contributed to the overall increase in weight gain in many other countries. Europeans seldom indulged in fast food prior to the spread of the American chains. Until recently, a hamburger, fries, and milkshake were non-existent in Europe. As America's fast food giants expanded into new markets and spread across the world, the waistlines of Europeans began to spread too! ADVERTISING Fast food restaurants frequently target the younger audiences with their advertising. Catchy slogans, snappy music, and trendy dances or performances draw children into the fat-laden mega-giants by the dozen. Although they occasionally advertise salads or fruit as a menu choice, their focus is on getting more for your money with "three beef patties" or "the monster burger". Children are particularly susceptible to the advertising gimmicks offered by fast food chains. Ronald McDonald is currently the second most well-known figure in America among children - second only to Santa Clause. PARENTAL EXAMPLES With today's fast-paced lifestyles and busy parents, it is often easier to run through a drivethru window to pick up a bag of burgers and fries than it is to prepare a healthy meal or take time to go to a restaurant that caters to healthier eating. Fast food restaurants know that parents are easy targets when they have children in tow. A prize in every meal can create a chorus of begging and whining for the fast food restaurant, and parents have a hard time ignoring the backseat passengers! There is no doubt that fast food restaurants have contributed significantly to our country's obesity epidemic. And there is no indication that this will change in the near term. Parents need to spend time educating their children at an early age about the risks associated with increased weight gain, poor nutritional habits, and lack of self-control related to making unhealthy food choices. Parents must also set an example for their children by making healthy choices for themselves and their families, before their children can learn to make these choices on their own. http://www.helium.com/items/827764-the-link-between-fast-food-and-health-problems? page=1,2

2. Text 2:

What Affect Does Fast Food Have on Our Health?

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Fast food in moderation is one of those things that the media seems to think we are unable to do, so they warn is with alarming frequency about the dangers of eating too many burgers. It may well be overstating the issue, but there are certainly ingredients in and aspects of fast food which can be detrimental to our diet and health, and which can affect us in the longer term. FAST FOOD AND FAST Fat is a dirty word when it comes to the twenty first century, and theres certainly a great deal of it in most fast food. Back in 2002, a 19 stone man attempted to sue one of the big fast food burger chains because he claimed that he didnt know fast food was bad for his diet until after hed had a heart attack in 1996. He also said that the fast food giants shouldnt be allowed to sell burgers with such high fat content as they were dangerous to health. Not surprisingly, he lost. He may have a point though, especially when it comes to trans fats some KFC and McDonalds burgers have previously been found to contain almost five grams of trans-fats in each burger...which is frightening when you also hear that exceeding this level of trans fats on a regular basis has been linked to a higher risk of heart disease 25% higher according to research. McDonalds in the UK has committed to getting rid of trans fats from all of its fast food, but the same rules dont apply to all of the outlets in other countries. SALT IN YOUR FAST FOOD Its not just about adding salt to your dinner around 80% of the salt in our diets comes from processed foods and meals, not from added table salt. Because this salt is hidden, we often dont realize that were eating it, and play down the potential effect on our health. Salt can have a detrimental effect on health because when levels in the body are too high, it can cause you to retain water, which some experts believe is also linked to high blood pressure. High blood pressure can lead to a higher risk of heart disease and strokes. Despite most fast food restaurants claiming to have reduced salt levels, a 2007 survey showed that just one meal from a Pizza Hut could potentially contain more than twice the recommended daily salt intake for an adult. That will be why you want to drink lots after a take away! SUGARY TREATS Some fast food is also loaded with sugar, and unfortunately, for doughnut aficionados, there is no nutritional benefit whatsoever to be found in eating sugary snacks and treats. The calories you get from sugar are what nutrition experts describe as empty that is you dont get any nutrition from sugar whatsoever. FAT AND SUGARY COMBINED - MORE ADDICTIVE THAN HEROIN? Researchers in America came to the conclusion back in 2003 that the combination of fat and sugar in junk food was possibly a contributing factor to the soaring rates of obesity in the country and globally. The scientists fed rats on food with similar fat and sugar levels and then saw them become agitated, and get the shakes when their diets were changed, because high sugar and fatty foods appear to stimulate the 'pleasure chemicals' in the brain. So fast food does seem to have a few negative effects on our bodies, but most of these are linked to excess. One fatty meal isnt going to turn you into a junk food addict any more
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than a pizza in isolation will cause a heart attack. Just be aware of what youre eating and limit fast food to occasional treats. http://www.fastfoodnation.co.uk/what-affect-does-fast-food-have-our-health.html

3. Text 3:

Why fast food makes you get fat

The nutritional make up of fast food encourages people to gorge on it unintentionally, increasing their risk of obesity, research suggests. Experts at the Medical Research Council found most fast food is very dense in calories you only need a small amount to bump up your calorific intake. They found that these "energy dense" foods could fool people into consuming more calories than the body needs. The research is published in the journal Obesity Reviews. A typical fast food meal has a very high energy density. It is more than one and a half times higher than an average traditional British meal and two and a half times higher than a traditional African meal. The researchers concluded that a diet high in fast foods would increase a person's risk of weight gain and obesity - even though they may feel that, they are eating no more than they would if they ate an average meal. Subconscious ability Researcher Professor Andrew Prentice, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said, "We all possess a weak innate ability to recognize foods with a high energy density. "We tend to assess food intake by the size of the portion, yet a fast food meal contains many more calories than a similar-sized portion of a healthy meal. "Since the dawn of agriculture, the systems regulating human appetite have evolved for the low energy diet still being consumed in rural areas of the developing world where obesity is almost non-existent. "Our bodies were never designed to cope with the very energy dense foods consumed in the West and this is contributing to a major rise in obesity." Professor Prentice drew particular attention to the consequences of a diet high in fast foods for children. "Children have not yet developed any of the learned dietary restraint that needs to be exerted by anyone wishing to remain slim in the modern environment. "It's surely a stark paradox that the strategy used to achieve rapid weight gain in malnourished children in Africa - the frequent offering of energy-dense foods - has now become the norm for many overweight children in affluent societies." Limited choice Dr Susan Jebb, of the MRC Human Nutrition Research Centre said, "In many outlets, the choice is so limited that it's virtually impossible to select a combination of items with even a moderate energy density.
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"You'd need to eat well below the portion size offered to avoid greatly exceeding recommended energy and fat requirements. "Fast food companies could play a major part in halting the rise in obesity if they adopted a more positive attitude to healthy eating such as providing meals of lower energy density, appropriately marketed and with point-of-sale nutrition labeling." Dr Jebb said many supermarket ready-meals and convenience foods were also very energy dense. "If we're going to stem the tide of obesity, it's important that we don't just swap one unhealthy meal for another. "Research has shown time and again that to maintain a healthy weight, we need to eat foods with less fat and added sugars and to take more exercise." http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3210750.stm

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