Fast foods Article Summary

Author

Institution

Harvard Prevention Research Center on Nutrition and Physical Activity (2013). Where and Why are Youth Eating Fast Food? Harvard Press.

Summary

Fast foods have become extremely popular especially among the youths. It is not surprising that quite a lot of fast food establishments are located close to colleges and other educational institutions. This article outlines a research conducted to determine what informs the choice of young people regarding fast foods. Given that the alternative to fast foods is healthy foods offered in other restaurants, the study aimed at determining why students choose fast food establishments over those other restaurants.

A sample of 90 high school and college students was used in the study. The study would be carried out in fast food establishments where the students went for lunch. This was done once the participants appeared to be close to clearing their meals.

This study determined that 74% of the participants considered price in their choice for fast foods. Healthy foods were considerably expensive than fast foods in which case they chose the latter. This explains why healthy restaurants have less youth customers than their fast food counterparts. However, 49% of these stated that they would still not opt for healthy establishments even if the prices were the same, against 51% who answered in the affirmative.

In addition, about 51% of the participants disagreed with the thought of making the school environment healthier through regulation of high-fat and sugary foods in the vending machines. This research study comes in handy as far as informing policies that would be effective in solving the problem of fast foods. Rather than focusing on new fast food places, it is imperative that more healthy and cheap options are provided to promote the consumption of healthy foods.

Usefulness

The usefulness of this article is demonstrated by the precise findings that the article presents regarding the priorities of meals, by youths. Apparently, youths do not care about healthy eating habits, but the youths have other priorities and considerations as time, convenience and cost when making decisions on the place to go for their meals and what to eat for their meals. The article is also objective; as it presents both sides of the argument surrounding fast foods.

Carlson, A., Kinsey, J., & Nadav, C (1998). Who Eats What, When, and From Where? Working Paper 98-05,The Retail Food Industry Center.

Summary

This article outlines a study that is built on the premise that while consumers use a small portion of their income on food, a large portion of the same is spent on convenience and food service. It aimed at determining the sources of the foods that individuals report to eating, as well as determining whether there exist significant variations between individuals that obtain their foods in retail food stores and those that obtain them from elsewhere. It acknowledged that household composition and income have little impact on the sources, while age determined immensely the sources, times and number of meals that individuals ate.

The study used data obtained from a 1994 study by Continuing Survey on Food Intake of Individuals (CSFII), which revealed the full range of foods consumed by individuals, times and places of consuming them, as well as sources. Grouping the 5,589 individuals into different categories, the study labeled the largest cluster as Home Cookers, who it noted accounted for 59% of the food offered in retail food stores as they obtained 93 % of its food from the stores.

On the other hand, the high service cluster, despite making only 10% of the sample, accounted for the consumption of half the amount of food that is offered in restaurants, while taking about 6% of the grocery foods. This underlines the fact that income is a determinant of the places where individuals obtained their foods, as well as the quality of foods that individuals consumed. This is complemented by the results that show that individuals eating Fast Foods consumed less than average amounts of fat, while the High Service individuals consumed more fat. It is worth noting that Home Cookers consumed considerably less amounts of vegetables, eggs, and meat than the average.

Usefulness

This article provides vital information to policy makers and restaurant owners in determining the most affordable price for healthy meals. The article proved that income was a key determinant of meals that are consumed by individuals, which means that people eat the meals that they can afford. Further, the article sends a word of caution to people who do not consume adequate meat and vegetable are required by the body. All classes of food are vital for body functioning, and they should be consumed in the right quantities.