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“The Fattening of America”

When reviewing “The Fattening of America” Elizabeth Kolbert the author explains why people started to put on weight. She quotes the recent studies made by a health economist Eric Finklstein where he states that we should blame price drops on food and drinks for those conditions. I believe most of us would agree with this statement; however, there may be other reasons why Americans have weight problems such as bad food choices and that people are lazy.

When you live in New York you are always late. Everyone is constantly rushing from one place to another. We don’t have time to prepare a breakfast at home not to mention a dinner. Therefore, we go to the first store, restaurant on our way without thinking what we are putting into our mouth. Instead of going to a supermarket and buying fresh food to make a healthy meal, we choose a restaurant or a store where food is not always healthy and fresh. It’s true that it is easier to go to restaurant and pick up something from the menu rather than going grocery shopping and cooking something, as a result we know what we are eating.

            When it comes to food our choices are not always healthy. Since fast food and sugary drinks like Coca – Cola are not reserved for special occasions like they used to be according to Eric Finkelstein, moreover they are cheap people that have easier access to it.  For example, the college that I attend has vending machines where you can buy candy, chocolate bars and soda. I haven’t seen any fresh fruits or juices. The only healthy option is water. When you are hungry you are going to buy what the vending machines has to offer such as, a lot of sugar, slat and fat which according to David A. Kessler our brain reacts to sweet, fatty foods the same way that addicts’ respond to cocaine. This will trigger us to buy not one chocolate bar, but two or more.

Changing your eating habits can be hard especially when what you eat is unhealthy. It’s going to take some time and effort, but in the long run it will be worth it. You will start feeling, looking better, and you will have more energy.