Diet and health issues In the hospitality industry Essay

Diet and health issues In the hospitality industry - Essay Example There is a commonly acknowledged fact, however, that wrong nutrition is one of the main reasons for diseases and deaths. Such diseases as cancer, diabetes, or obesity, cause 2/3 of all deaths, one of the main reasons for these pathologies being incorrect nutrition, and namely - the increased content of cholesterol and fat. Fast-food, in particular, contains a very dangerous form of cholesterol which can damage heart and blood vessels. The fast food industry in the United Kingdom is characterized as "the most prominent, the most dynamic and the most rapidly growing" market. (Jones et al. 2002) Modern spread of junk food is causing different illnesses, of which the most common one is obesity. (Leake & Porter 2003) Not everyone understands nowadays that bulimia, for example, is a kind of addiction, same as alcoholism or drug-taking. But the difference is - food is a "legal drug". The most widespread addiction is considered to be sugar. Food and soft drinks manufacturers use this sugar addiction to the wide range. They know that people cannot eat pure sugar, and therefore they put sugar in excessive amounts into soft drinks and sweets. As a result, many people get addicted to sugar, and do not even realize how much of this product they consume. Almost nobody counts the content of sugar in his everyday Fanta, or in a pack of biscuits. Manufacturers and owners of fast-food restaurants are making their profit, whereas many people suffer from being addicted to sugar. More than half citizens of the USA or Canada are overweight, and everyone knows that it is harmful for health. "According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, a whopping 55% of adult Americans are now classified as overweight" (James-Enger 2007) However, the doctors and dieticians cannot oppose the everlasting flow of ads and commercials propagating "eating non-stop" as the best way of life. The number of people suffering from obesity has been growing fast; especially topical this problem is for the USA, however many European and Asian countries also have increasing number of obese people, and therefore the growth of patients suffering from diabetes is no wonder. Also, nutritionists are sure that the growth of the number of people suffering from increased blood pressure, heart attacks, etc., is also caused by diet disorders, and, above all, obesity. There is an opinion that obesity can largely be attributed to the fact that many people nowadays prefer to eat out rather than stay at home, and mostly in fast-food restaurants. The food in restaurants contains more calories than home-made food, and apart from that, children coming to restaurants normally eat more. Fast-food causes diseases, and it harms human organisms as it normally takes not more than fifteen minutes to eat it, whereas there is a so-called saturation centre that is "switched on" after 20 minutes after a person begins eating. If within these first 20 minutes one eats fast, it is possible to eat far too much. Moreover, some products, even those served in restaurants, can be a source of infection. British doctors recommend not to eat underdone hamburgers as they can contain dangerous microorganisms. It has been proved that a healthy diet can prevent the development of