Fast Food Research: Second Post Assignment

Catholic Social Teaching and the problem of advertising to children and the harmful effects of health problems such as obesity.

Our social justice issue is the prevalence of obesity and being overweight and the heath implications that are brought along as side effects. Obesity has become a huge issue with the ubquitous nature of fast food today, and the fat filled foods that they sell; when combined with the sedentary lifestyle and the decreasing amount of phsyical activities that Americans go through today the results have been disastrous. Along with this, fast food corporations have increasingly targeted their advertising to young children who do not yet know the negative effects of so much fast food and thus will be drawn into eating large amounts of fast food without knowing the consequences, and corporations do this because they realize how easily children can be affected. This is the problem that we are targeting.

CST #1

The dignity of the human and the rights that he should receive are paramount to the foundation of rational and thoughtful human society. Since the life of humans and the advancement of peaceful human existence are essential to moral reasoning, the Catholic Church shows us that we cannot sacrifice the wellbeing of ones existence for self promoting gains or generally destructive outcomes. In the fast food industry, advertising has seen a change from gentle suggestion to relative programming. Advertising of fast food in schools is disturbing the right for self thought in our youth because it is scientifically known that a child’s brain is far less developed than a grown adult and in as such he or she is far more susceptible to foreign influences. Since we believe that humans are more important than anything else on this planet it is unjust for one people to program our young to eat fattening and harmful foods so that big corporations can gain profits. Human life should and must take precedence over all other worldly things so big fast food has no right to be profiting off the endangered health of our race. (Jarrett)
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CST #2 - Call to Family, Community, and Participation

The Catholic Social Teaching of Call to Family, Community, and Participation says that the family is the base unit of the community and serves as the foundations in which the children will learn their values and teachings , such as the religious teachings of the church in Catholic families. These base foundations of the family should also be protected by the community and the government so that the community will be strengthened through the protection of the family. The family also has the responsibility of the well-being of the members of each individual member by providing certain necessities for survival and well-being. This is important because it should the family that teaches the children healthy eating habits especially following their own culture or values and this should not be obstructed by the fast food industry convincing children to consume fast food without being aware of the health implications. This sort of advertising by the fast food industry is undermining the authority of the family to teach the children healthy eating habits for later in life when health problems can have even more serious effects. While corporations are right to advertise their products, they should not do so in a way that takes advantage of the innocence of the children and their lack of experience and ignore the right of the family to teach their own children the good values.