Burgers + Fries = Worse Than Satan?

You see their towering golden emblem while driving down practically every street. The slogan, “Over one billion served,” hangs in the air, along with the aroma of oil and trans fats. With ubiquitous billboards and commercials on TV propelling McDonalds, Burger King, and Coca-Cola into the mouths of American kids, it’s no wonder we really are the biggest fatsos out there.

Hopscotch and jump ropes are so last year, anyway. Let’s face it; kids today would rather have their video games. And just try and seize that Playstation or Snickers bar from a caffeinated nine-year-old.

With kids blaming parents, parents blaming teachers and teachers blaming government officials, this feud is ballooning bigger than Louie Anderson’s waistline.

Now, fast-food chains like Burger King and Subway are offering healthier choices for kid’s meals. Burger King’s “Fresh Apple Fries” are only 35 calories, compared to regular fries which boast 13 grams of fat and 230 calories. Burger King is working on a new Kids Meal to be comprised of apple sauce, chicken tenders and low-fat milk. The Subway Kids Pak includes a turkey sandwich, Fruit Roll-Up, and juice.

But why are fast-food chains so desperate to preach nutrition? Didn’t apples exist before there ever was a Double Whopper?

Ever since Jared, the delightfully down-sized Subway champion, began to proclaim the merits of subs on television, a market has formed for meals that are both quick and cheap, but also won’t lead to cardiac arrest. Then McDonalds became swamped with lawsuits, and started to offer salads and free pedometers.

That’s a big diversion from their Chicken McNuggets. The classic American treat contains thirty-eight ingredients, thirteen of which are derived from corn, for whatever reason.

“The real problem is how this food is so heavily marketed to children 9 and under," said Eric Schlosser, author of the best-seller Fast-Food Nation, in a Seattle Post interview. "It started innocently enough, giving a toy with the meal, playgrounds (installed for indoor/outdoor use at the restaurant). There are good things about it. But these are very, very crucial years. If you look at the ingredients of the fast-food meals that are being heavily marketed to children, they're extremely high in fat, and high in sugar and high in salt."

When our country’s girth becomes too much to bear, do fast-food corporations need to intervene? In all likelihood, when you go to Burger King you are in the mood for a burger, and have no desire to wash down your bacon-broiled sandwich with a tall glass of milk.

But think of the children!

"If you look at the rise of the obesity rate in the United States," said Schlosser, "it's grown pretty much in step with the rise of fast-food consumption."

If parents are concerned with their child’s poor eating habits, it’s probably not the wisest idea to continue to take them to Burger King on a regular basis. In order for children to eat healthfully, they need more than a few healthy options on the menu (and some of these things, like Fruit Roll-Ups, aren’t even that healthy). It comes down to portion-control, eating a variety of foods, and avoiding processed foods teeming with preservatives.

New options at McDonalds and Subway can’t make everyone commit to a healthy lifestyle. If anything, it’s just another trend-driven business venture. Today, it’s crucial to be educated about nutrition, especially kids’, and everyone is capable of making smart, healthy decisions. Businesses shouldn’t have to make decisions for the general public.

So the next time you pull up to the drive-thru and that grainy speaker voice calls out, Can I help you?, don’t sweat. Be a renegade- order a burger and fries.

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By Ann Marie Trietley