Fast Food, Slow People

 

    

    "No time to cook at home". 

This is a sentiment that many Americans resonate with. Of course, they can't just go out for work, hungry and de-energized. Without food in your system, how can you possibly be productive? So, a solution was needed, and so a solution was born: Fast-Food.

   America's relationship with fast food is practically synonymous with the country itself. As Colby.edu describes it: "Fast -food is a presence in almost everybody’s life on a daily basis." Often times when people think "fast-food", they think of McDonald's or Burger King and then think of America (and its citizens, for the better or worse). But why? Why is this industry so widespread and associated with the US? 

    The answer comes down to three factors: convenience, accessibility, and cost. They're convenient in that they're served fast, accessible in that there are fast food restaurants scattered across every city, and are inexpensive (most of the time). These factors come together to form a massive industry that thrives off the need of working citizens for quick and cheap food they can eat on the go. 

Chart displaying the rapid growth of the fast food industry, and its predicted growth over the next decade. via Precedence Research. 

    But where did this all start? Before there were several dozens of large chain fast food restaurants, there were Automats.

     During the early 20th century, as technology grew more advanced and the job market skyrocketed, there was an opportunity to target busy workers for business. Food services company Horn and Hardart opened America's first automats in 1902 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By popular demand, more automats began opening throughout the years, remaining popular throughout the 1920s and 1930s. 

However, the first major fast-food chain wouldn't come until nearly 20 years after the first automat was established. White Castle was founded in 1921 in Wichita Kansas,  and went on to create many competitors who sought to emulate its style of operation. It was White Castle that standardized how fast-food restaurants today operate and serve their business. From then on, other similar chains would be born, with McDonald's establishment in 1940, followed by Burger King's establishment in 1953. From then on to now, one of the largest industries ever created was born.

Heat map of all McDonald's restaurants across the US in 2016. Via Arcgis 

    Unfortunately, from the continued growth of the industry, a problem would spread across the country. As more chains and restaurants are established, the more American citizens consume their products. This has resulted in a prevalent issue: overconsumption and obesity. 

    Fast food is highly unhealthy, consisting of foods cooked in fatty oils and ingredients high in sugar and cholesterol. The National Institutes of Health detail that consuming fast food twice a week or more increased the rate of obesity by approximately 50% than that of someone who ate fast food once a week or didn't eat fast food at all. The prominence of fast food, combined with the tight schedules of the average American, causes them to consist off of the unhealthy products these restaurants provide more often. 

As jobs become more demanding, and less time is available to the average citizen, fast food is left as their only choice for feeding themselves, unable to control the changes in their body as they continue to eat. This relationship results in the acceleration of the industry, and the slowing down of its consumers.

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