Chapter 13 in They Say, I Say dealt with the issue of fast food and obesity in American today. The title of the introduction to the chapter is titled, "Is Fast Food the New Tobacco?" and it poses interesting arguments about the current food industry and how we do and/or should respond to it.

The image of a McDonalds advertisement of a large hamburger at the beginning of the chapter stating, "You know you want me," provided an interesting insight as to the thoughts and eating habits of people and the guilt they may experience when they eat. This interesting conflict of eating food and being healthy or looking good is a very interesting topic to me as a psychological battle. I am interested in investigating this psychological battle in women and the possible consequence of eating disorders and low self esteem.

I think it might be interesting to research the traditions of eating and drinking in America as well as around the world. The idea that it is acceptable to overeat and drink on holidays and special occasions also adds to this negative connotation of consuming food by making it acceptable to consume only on special occasions. Also, the overall evolution of the size and portions of food and drink have dramatically increased over the very recent years. Especially in fast food, the sizes of portions have increased across the board. An interesting research question may ask if fast food really is the problem, or is it just the tradition of overeating that we have adopted in our society.

Keywords:
obesity
overweight
fat
thinness
obsessive eating/not eating
women and self esteem
eating disorders
culture and eating