<p>I believe the fast food industry needs to be sued, but not because of obesity or portion sizes - what’s horrifying to me is the chemicals and nasty substances they put in their food (petroleum in chicken nuggets anyone). I think it IS like tobacco companies, because I find that outside of the calories issue many people are simply unaware what all the hydrogenated oils, artificial colors, flavors, etc. etc. etc. do to the body. And I truly believe that many of the substances used in today’s food should either not be allowed for use in food or at least carry warnings, just like tobacco.</p>
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<p>250 calories is not a lot, and this is for someone who is 6 foot tall. Someone who is 5 foot tall only needs to overeat by 125 calories to go from a normal weight to obese is 2 years. My point was that obese people aren’t gorging themselves on unhealthy food. Many are eating fairly normal portions, but might eating just a little bit more than they need to. Of course it’s a lot easier to vilify obese people.</p>
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<p>I’m actually not joking. I used to be 100 lbs in middle school. And I’ve been 6 foot since probably high school. Then, I got to like 165 in college and stayed there for years. Now, I’m lifting and eating, 172lbs, and growing. Maybe it’s because I’m not biking so much, but I’m telling you, eating more will make you bigger. 135 is way below average for a 6’ adult.</p>
<p>For the record, protein and hgh are what makes you grow. This is why eating right and exercising are equally important in staying fit. On the other hand, fast food and insulin make you F-A-T! This is no secret.</p>
<p>Let’s sue the grocery stores because they sell cakes, cookies, ice cream, soda, etc.</p>
<p>Let’s sue liquor stores because they sell liquor/wine which can lead to alcoholism.</p>
<p>Let’s sue the Carvel and Haagan daz because they sell ice cream and fattening drinks.</p>
<p>Let’s sue the makers of furniture because their products are used to sit and relax rather than exercise.</p>
<p>Let’s sue the makers of video games because too many kids sit for hours playing them.</p>
<p>We have become a nation of whiners who fail to take personal responsibility for their actions. It’s always someone or something else’s fault. Pathetic attitude.</p>
<p>Acollegestudent, no one is forcing anyone to eat food that is bad for them. It is a personal choice and is the purchasers responsibility. Suing the restaurant for that is what is wrong with society today.</p>
<p>acollegestudent,
Your argument would apply to not only the fast food industry, but to the entire food industry. So, when will the suing end. Why not, as consumers, just become better educated. Learn how to read food labels. IF you don’t want to eat anything unhealthy, then learn how to avoid these things. A lawsuit isn’t necessary. Let the marketplace determine if a company goes out of business due to what is in their food.</p>
<p>Amesie quote:
But I am not sure that they really have fully disclosed the safety of their food. For example, “0 trans fat” does not mean “no trans fat,” it means less than 0.5 g trans fat. So if someone ate two or three items containing “0 trans fat,” he or she could really have eaten close to or even more than a gram of trans fat.</p>
<p>The government set the definition of ‘no trans fat’. The government definition allows the food to have a certain amount of trans fat PER SERVING. It is not the fault of the food manufacturers that they say no trans fat when there is some in the food. The food companies are correct in their claim when they use the government’s definition. In this case, you should be angry with the government.</p>
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<p>I’m sure you would be able to advise us on how to test for petroleum products and other similarly harmful ingredients in our food. Or maybe we should just grow and produce all our food instead?</p>
<p>^^^^ EXACTLY</p>
<p>Some sort of regulation/warning IS necessary for the ENTIRE food industry, because even when you are educated about these issues, it’s really hard to tell sometimes what food contains. And what about people who are less educated or come from a lower socio-economic background and only see one type of food and no one in their family/community knows any better? I went to a very selective school, and I met classmates (keep in mind, these are high-achieving people who are legally adults) who have no idea about the harm that some foods/additives can do, because they had no access to this information. It’s not that they don’t care. It’s that they don’t even know to ask the questions, because they have not been exposed to these issues. They have heard about calories, but that’s about it.</p>
<p>I am not one to say suing should be done at the drop of a hat, but in this case I firmly believe that this is the only way to stop the harmful practices of the food industry. I feel a consumer has every right to know if there are harmful/potentially poisonous substances that are being used in his/her food. And I also believe this is NO different from cigarettes. People had a choice not to smoke too - the problem is people didn’t know just how harmful it was. Just like now, I can guarantee you that a huge percentage of the population does not know about the long-term dangers of many ingredients used in food.</p>
<p>I try to only eat food with good ingredients (for example, I love sweets, but I only try to eat products made with real eggs, butter, sugar, not artificial sweeteners) and read the labels, but in a lot of cases is IS absolutely impossible to tell what exactly is in the food. When you are eating in a restaurant, or worse, a fast-food place, you have little to no idea what goes into your food, and that’s not OK. Also, even if people do read labels, not everyone understands what the labels/ingredients mean. It’s convoluted. There are different names for the same thing, and there are efforts to ‘trick’ the consumer (using words like ‘natural’ when it really means very little - I can give more examples). I think it’s about time the food industry was more accountable.</p>
<p>“What? Fast food makes you fat? I am SHOCKED.”
-I am too. I thought it was sushi that make you fat, stupid me!</p>
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Check out the burger chain In-N-Out which uses fresh ingredients - </p>
<p>[Food</a> Quality - In-N-Out Burger](<a href=“http://www.in-n-out.com/menu/food-quality.aspx]Food”>http://www.in-n-out.com/menu/food-quality.aspx)</p>
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<p>So the ban on suing isn’t all-encompassing. It only bans lawsuits related to injury resulting from a person’s weight gain or health condition related to obesity. In other words, if there were a chemical or ingredient that was harmful, but not related to weight gain, a lawsuit would be allowed. </p>
<p>It’s a very specific law intended to protect restaurants from frivolous lawsuits relating to obesity. I’m fine with that.</p>
<p>We have a several places to eat in our neighborhood that serve healthy food with quality ingredients. Not fast food, but real wholesome food. And their businesses are doing well.</p>
<p>And In and Out is my son’s fast food place of choice, but even there, a steady diet of hamburgers, fries and milk shakes is not going to be that good for you as it’s a lot of fat, salt and starch, no matter how “pure” the ingredients. I see it as our family’s responsibility to teach our kids about basic nutrition.</p>
<p>How burger is not overly processed food if bun is not even close to be called a food item in my household at least. Even so-called whole grain variety. Bun is a bun and should be stripped off the burger. Unless they serve it on the lettuce leaves or without anything, I would call any hamburger an overly processed type of food because of bun, which is most of the hamburger anyway.</p>
<p>^^ In-N-Out offers an option to get the burger without the bun - it’s sandwiched between lettuce instead. They call it “Protein Style”.</p>
<p>If I do get a burger with a bun I throw at least 75% of the bun away (using about 25% as a burger holding device) just to save on some calories.</p>
<p>When having a home cooked burger I don’t use a bun at all - just a fork.</p>
<p>Read a really interesting article today explaining how leafy greens are the leading cause of foodborne illness. Just something to be careful about.</p>
<p>^This sounds good. Although my preference is a bloody steak, no-bun burger sounds great. Yes, buns are just waste of calories and no satisfaction in return. I much rather have chocolate or ice cream, at least I enjoy them.</p>
<p>In regard to being careful, yes and no, the clean oxygen that we breath is also a cause for oxidation in our body and many many deseases. Cannot be too careful, got to breath.</p>
<p>zoosermom:</p>
<p>It does seem that most of the e-coli outbreaks are due to contaminated produce.</p>
<p>Gladgraddad, I’m a vegetarian so I was serioulsly put out to learn that. But I felt the need to share!</p>
<p>Acollegestudent, here is the opening argument of your proposed lawsuit:</p>
<p>Lawyer: “Mr Food Industry, is the labeling of your food is compliance with current FDA regulations?”</p>
<p>Food Industry: “Yes, we are audited by the FDA.”</p>
<p>Lawyer: “Are all of your ingredients approved by the FDA for human consumption in the amounts you use per serving?”</p>
<p>Food Industry: “Yes, 100%. We are audited by the FDA and other gov’t agencies.”</p>
<p>Lawyer: “Your Honor, move to dismiss this case.”</p>
<p>Judge: “Case dismissed.”</p>