It seems clear that obesity in today’s society is to some extent due to the availability of fast food. Should governments place a tax on fast food to reduce the amount of fast food consumed?

Obesity has become a common problem in western societies and

this

is partly due to the availability of fast

food

at low prices. To tackle

this

problem, it has been suggested that governments should increase the tax on fast foods in order to reduce the amount of pre-cooked meals consumed. I personally believe that

this

is a sound idea, because especially young people, who have less money, will be discouraged from buying

food

at quick service restaurants. The main reason for the high consumption of junk

food

is that it is a cheap alternative to healthy meals. A

salad

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salad, for

for

example often is

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example, is often

example is often

twice as expensive as a burger, resulting in more people eating the burger than the salad.

As a result

, people prepare fewer meals themselves and eat more mass-produced

food

instead

. In my opinion, it should not be possible to sell fast

food

at a lower price than staple

food

. By making takeaway meals more expensive than vegetables and fruit, people would change their eating habits, as they would want to save money. Another way to reduce consumption of fast

food

would be to prohibit its promotion. A similar approach was taken in terms of advertising cigarettes and one can say that

this

approach has been successful to some extent.

Additionally

, commercials for fast

food

often target young children through offering inducements,

such

as the toys in the happy meal at McDonalds

for example

. The children are persuaded to demand a happy meal, yet often do not necessarily want to eat the

food

contained in it. The only thing they want is the toy. If advertising junk

food

were forbidden, the

number

of children consuming pre-cooked meals would be reduced and

therefore

the

number

of obese children would decrease as well. In conclusion, governments should put a tax on fast

food

to reduce the amount consumed in order to decrease the

number

of obese people. By placing a tax on fast

food

and making it more expensive than healthy raw foods, people

would began

Suggestion

would begin

to eat more healthily. If

additionally

the advertising of quick service restaurants were banned, the

number

of obese people would decrease even more drastically.