Introduction
Good nutrition is doubtlessly crucial for any living organism in general and human organism in particular. Therefore, it is especially important to take good care of the quality of the food consumed by teenagers and young adults, seeing how both of these groups, with their organisms entering the final stage of development, are especially vulnerable to the harmful effects of the inside and outside factors, such as overconsumption of fats, demand that the food should be nutritious and energizing.
The above-mentioned does not mean that the food should lack certain elements or be low in calories; instead, food must not contain the so-called saturated fats. Because of the harmful effects that fast food has on students’ health, allowing for locating fast food restaurants or shops on the campus territory is more than unfair towards the students; however, since fast food has long shelf life and is relatively easy to produce, the college economy might suffer a considerable shock.
Starting Positively
Much to the credit of fast food and the companies producing it, there are also a number of positive aspects of providing fast food on the territory of campus. To start with, the very term “fast food” speaks for itself – the food is being produced at a very fast pace and within a relatively short amount of time. Thus, providing enough food for a large amount of people on a daily basis becomes possible.
Reputation Issues
However, the few positive aspects of allowing fast food on the territory of a campus still do not justify the harmful effects of the given step. The idea of allowing selling fast food on the campus territory raises a number of issues, and not all of them concern good nutrition rules.
While it is important that the students should be provided with only high-quality meals, other issues should also be taken into account when allowing for selling junk food on the campus territory. One of the biggest concerns is related closely to the reputation of the corresponding educational establishment.
Fast Food and People
For the final argument, the effect of fast food on people’s health should be brought up. There is no need to stress the fact that fast food has earned quite a bad reputation among the general population over the past few years.
The concerns for the effects of fast food on human body mostly stem from the statistical data concerning the relation between fast food and such health issues as weight gain and diabetes. In addition, it has been proven that, when consumed, the fats in fast food lead to blood cells clotting and results in varicose dilatation and other health problems of the kind.
Fighting the Counterarguments
One of the recurrent arguments against the statement offered above is that the relation between the aforementioned diseases and junk food has not been proven yet; the specified diseases could have been spawned by a range of other reasons among the people whose cases have been researched to collect the statistical data.
It should be kept in mind that the harm of fast food still remains a theory that is yet to be tested. The obvious truth is, however, that no fast food can possibly provide all the elements and vitamins that the organism of a teenager or a young adult needs.
Nailing Down the Problem
Hence the key issue of fast food on campus emerges. The problem is not that a specific educational establishment allows fast food chains to promote their products on the campus area; the problem is that students – and the campus staff, for that matter – rarely consume anything except fast food once the latter has been provided. The availability of fast food makes the search for other nutritional elements and, therefore, the search for a place to buy fruits, vegetables and lean meat at seem tedious and unnecessary.
One could argue that no one actually makes students buy junk food and consume it; indeed, it is a matter of personal choice to decide on one’s diet. On the other hand, however, people often forget the fact that fast food is being advertized regularly on TV and Internet, while the principles of healthy nutrition often remain in the shadow.
Conclusion
With that being said, the only reasonable solution for the concept of fast food on campus territory is leveling the chances of the fast food chains and the traditional restaurants located in the vicinity. To start with, it is important that both fast food restaurants and the ones that serve regular food should be within the same distance from the campus.
Second, it is crucial that the food chains providing healthy food should be promoted just as much as the fast food chains. Once the students and the members of the college staff are able to compare the pros and cons of each type of food, as well as consider the future health prospects after consuming the chosen type of food, the students and the college staff will be able to make the choice that is right for them instead of following the crowd or a pretty commercial.