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Not so much Canada but United States citizens. It puzzles
me how I see Burger King and McDOnalds get so many
customers here and places like Subway get little
customers in comparison here on a typical day. It seems
like even older people here make those kind of choices.
Are people not as health conscious here like they are
elsewhere or what? I can only imagine how these same
people eat at home since what you choose to eat for a
restaurant reflects your home food choices as well.
Set aside from generalisations, it's true that food generally is worse in the US than in Europe.
Having such widespread fast-food chains, processed food and dubious quality aliments isn't in America's favour either.
I saw a service on the TV( therefore it might be inaccurate but it didn't seem) once about the food served in the US schools (mostly elementary and high schools) and having such things in Italy is generally unimaginable.
This doesn't mean that all Americans are fat, lazy and stupid, it just attests a reality, like saying that there's enormous corruption in Italy doesn't offend me because I am not corrupted.
I don't think the problem in the US is so much about fast food as it is about lots of empty calories, really unbalanced diets, portion sizes, and other cultural factors. A lot of the empty calories come from random candy and snacks of course, but also from drinks like soda, alcohol, crap added in coffee, or even just crappy fruit juices like orange juice or grape juice. As for the unbalanced diets, lol, it's funny, in a tragic sense. I mean, sometimes you go out to eat (not just a fast food place), you order something, and when it gets to you there are NO freaking vegetables, or hardly any. Like half the plate will be some random grain based thing and the other half is meat, both smothered in a soup of sauce that prevents you from even being able to taste the original food. It's disgusting. It's why I hardly ever eat out, and when I do I have to get any sauces on the side and often, if I want any decent amount of vegetables, I'll have to get something off the small vegetarian section of the menu. Of course, restaurants will give you 2x or more the food you need too, so people then might feel obligated to eat more than they should just cuz it's on the plate, they paid for it and they don't want to take it home.
As for cultural factors, I'm not sure if food attitudes are different in the Europe, but in the US I get the feeling that people tend to eat what they want, again, with no regard for balance or anything. By that I mean, when they make a decision about what to eat, it's often more like, oh I want to eat X kind of food, I haven't it in a while or I want to eat at X place. How many vegetables or pieces of fruit, or how much protein etc. they have eaten for the day, those things seem like they just aren't factored into the decision making process.
On a further cultural note, at least for guys, particularly younger guys, there's this stupid culture of masculinity bs here in the US. You know, the 'eat like a man' crap that tries to make people that eat healthy food look like a bunch of pussi*s. 'Real men' aren't afraid to do what they want, to take risks....or, apparently, to die of a heart attack .
In my area in the city I live, Chula Vista, California; southern California which has a lot of fast food. I can walk to McDonald's, two Mexican Food places, a Rally's, a Carl's Jr, a Long John Silvers and a doughnut shop. All fast food and fatty food places.
Also within walking distance is a corner store across from the McD's that sells fresh produce. Across the street from that is a larger grocery store that has even more fresh produce and fresh meats as well as whole wheat breads. If I drive a few blocks south from that point, there is a mom and pop hamburger place. In that same shopping center, there is another grocery store with more fresh produce and meats. Right across the street from that is yet another grocery store with, you guessed it, more fresh produce and meats at half the normal price as elsewhere. Now if I were to start from that same point and go north instead, I would encounter another grocery store with more fresh options, many of them organic like in the other stores. If I continue north from there, there's another fast food place, a Jack in The Box. Another block there is yet another grocery store can you believe it with more fresh options. But it gets better; across the street from this last grocery store is a Sprouts with a huge selection of organic foods. Believe it or not, across the street from that is a Fresh and Easy with more fresh options.
Yes, there is a lot of fatty and unhealthy food around but if that's all you're seeing, it could quite possibly be that, that's all you're looking for.
I don't care for Subway either.
Usually when I go out to eat I go to " Mama Fatso's Greasy Kitchen. "
She just had the place sprayed for roaches last week and they covered up that peep hole in the women's restroom. If you get there early you can get that table that doesn't wobble.
I think it's a socioeconomic thing. I have no idea why, as I think eating fast food three times a day costs more than a bag of groceries that will provide you with the same amount of meals. It won't be the best or most balanced, but still eons better than nothing but McDonalds.
But it almost always seems like the less money someone has, the more inclined they are to eat a lot of junk.
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