I did a book discussion today on Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the American Meal by Eric Schlosser. I'm sure you've heard of it, it's a famous expose on the fast food industry and all of the nasty things it's done to American diets and lifestyles. Schlosser covers everything from the downfall of the American farm to hideous practices in the meat packing industry to the poor judgement and consumerism that plagues our youth. It's a good read, I suggest you indulge if you can... if you have a strong stomach, that is.
After reading this book I thought, "Why would I eat this fast food crap at all? Am I really that lazy that I can't find (or make!) something better to eat than that?" I mean, basically everytime I go to Mickey D's I get sick and when I eat the fries I end up with a sore throat. I've always wondered about the latter, I discovered from reading the book that they put chemical beef fragrance on the fries to make them more appealing to the public. They make this frankenstein fragrance at the same place where they make Calvin Klein and Estee Lauder perfumes. I'm allergic to those, is it no wonder I can't eat the fries?
A few years back I went vegetarian for over a year. I'm not going to say it was easy because it wasn't --- every time we went out to eat I had to struggle to find things to order. It took a certain amount of effort but I have to say that my stomach thanked me and I felt pretty good. Somewhere along the line I got lazy and gave it up for the easy out of ordering, buying and eating meat. But just because I do that doesn't mean I have to eat garbage, there are organically raised meat products just as there are organic vegetables. After learning what the meat industry is feeding cows I think organic or free-range meat is the way to go if you must partake.
So for me I guess it all boils down to this: I know what I should be eating and I know how to get it. I know it's not always easy to find the right choices or to stick with it but I know I'm better off doing just that in the long run. So here's to finding a better alternative and to avoiding the fast food industry altogether.
How about you? Could you give up fast food because it's bad for you?
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2 comments:
Fast food equals a fast trip to the bathroom anymore. Laziness is the only word to describe why we don't prepare more of our own meals. It is funny how 3rd world countries can eat better than us. At least healthier...
The book might be good, but the movie may be the most boring thing I've watched in years. A real documentary would have been better.
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