Column: Unhealthy choice: fatty foods or thin wallets
Healthy eating and diet habits used to be a fad, but that fad does not seem to be going away anytime soon.
Our society has gradually formed the idea that skinnier is better, but cheaper is also better too. Unfortunately, skinny comes at a high price.
Surprisingly to me, the lower-income and poorer population has increased in obesity compared to the higher class.
This has happened because fast food and processed “junk” foods are cheaper than produce, high-quality meats and organic food.
The cost of three pounds of organic apples is $4.49, whereas the cost of regular apples is $3.99 for three pounds. An apple is not even a full meal for most people. A person can get a McDouble from McDonalds for 99 cents.
A McDouble is going to fill someone before an apple will; yet the organic apples are four times the price of the McDouble. For most college students, and those with lower incomes, price does matter.
This means the McDouble is more likely to be chosen than the organic, or regular, apples.
Obesity in America has increased, but is it entirely the individuals’ fault?
The economy is not in the best state by any means, so maybe a correlation is starting to form between the economy and obesity.
I am still baffled by the idea that overly processed foods containing lots of calories and fat are so much cheaper than foods that do not even use pesticides and have very little fat and caloric content.
The bad things come with a good price, and the good things come with a bad price.
The economy has directly affected the health and weight of society.
Those who are poorer and have lower incomes are practically forced to buy fast food and processed junk food, while the healthy and organic foods are only feasible for those who are at least in the middle class.
There are people that can help the fact that they are obese or overweight, but some cannot help it because of their financial state.
It is unfortunate that your economic state can now control your weight and health.
Some people are not able to control their economic state, which also makes them unable to control their food quality and weight.
Abby Allgire is a senior journalism major. She can be reached at 581-2812
