Causes and Effects of Consuming Unhealthy Foods
“Health is the greatest wealth.” In the past, individuals had healthy and freshly prepared food with their families at home. Nowadays, due to lifestyle and rapid developments in the world, most people prefer fast foods, including fried chicken, pizza, ice creams, and hamburgers, to healthy and natural consumables. Therefore, it is imperative to focus on the causes and effects of consuming unhealthy foods to understand their impacts on an individual’s health and the effect to the country and society.
Indeed, some reasons have contributed to unhealthy eating habits. The person’s lifestyle is one factor that greatly contributed to this trend. People nowadays work long hours to meet their daily needs, while the young people have extended school hours. Therefore, this gives them little or no time to look for ingredients and prepare a healthy meal. Most of them prefer to have the fast foods in the restaurants, which are cheap and unhealthy. Another contribution is that the women who used to prepare food for the family are now working and have no time to prepare a meal for the household.
The change of diet and the consumption of these unhealthy foods can have serious effects on an individual’s health status. One of the most common outcomes is that people are becoming obese, thereby becoming less productive. When an individual is overweight, it puts him or her at a health risk that may lead to other complications such diabetes and or heart diseases. However, people can overcome this challenge by having a schedule that will allow them time to prepare a meal for themselves rather than buying the unhealthy foods, which may negatively affect their health.
The other cause that has greatly contributed to the consumption of unhealthy foods is the aspect of the advertisement. With the growth in technology, satellite televisions, and the internet, especially on social media, the adverts for the unhealthy foods reach many people who are potential customers. Naturally, people will always want to try new foods, particularly after a new poster. For example, if one was watching television and saw an advert for a new brand of pizza being offered at a favorable price, the chances are that the person would eventually buy it. In essence, most people are unaware of what they eat; therefore, they are easily influenced by adverts, especially when the commercials are appealing, and the product is cheap.
Other than health, there are other negative effects connected to consumption of unhealthy foods. For instance, when certain foods are consumed, they might affect the cultural practices of a family. The parents and their children no longer eat together since they have diverse choices and different schedules of eating. The practice leaves less or no time for the family to talk together. In this case, the situation greatly contributes to culture disruption, which may lead to breaking a family unit.
The third reason why there is an increase in people eating the fast foods is the fact that the country is developing, indicating that most of the young people, who make the 70% of the population, have money that they can readily spend. Therefore, they can afford to purchase these fast foods. It is worth noting that the young people, mostly the college students, are the largest group of people who consume these unhealthy foods. The food store mainly targets them as their potential customers by strategically positioning their business near colleges and universities. In addition, the cost of making a healthy meal is a bit expensive given the cost of the mandatory ingredients and the cost of preparation that may not be affordable to many young people. As such, many young individuals would prefer to buy the inexpensive, fast foods.
The unhealthy fast foods negatively affect the economy of the country. Most of these companies are not locally owned, while their profits do not necessarily assist in the growth of the economy. Even though the fast foods that make a huge percentage of the unhealthy foods are not expensive to buy, the cost of preparation is considerably low. Therefore, there is a big profit margin for the foreign corporations as opposed to those local firms that manufacture and prepare healthy foods.
As discussed above, it is evident that several factors contribute to the consumption of unhealthy foods. The discussion has clearly shown the effects connected to eating unhealthy fast foods. Although the foods are tasty and convenient, we have seen that they have adverse effects on the economy, social, and most importantly, an individual’s health. Therefore, it is important for people to learn to choose the fast foods effectively. By doing so, they may avoid some of the health conditions related to the consumption of these foods. It is also important for families to come up with a schedule that will encourage healthy eating and having time to prepare and have a meal together. Although these unhealthy fast foods have negative effects, especially on our health, very little can be done to prevent people from consuming them.
