1940- Brothers Richard “Dick” and Maurice “Mac” open McDonald’s Bar-B-Que Restaurant ◦ Fourteenth and E streets, San Bernardino, CA ◦ Featured a large menu 1948- McDonald’s is reopened with a small menu ◦ Nine items, featuring the 15¢ hamburger
1949- French fries are introduced to the menu 1955- First franchise McDonald’s opens ◦ Des Plaines, Illinois ◦ The Golden Arches design was made by architect Stanley Meston http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mcd_faq/student_research.h tml?DCSext.destination=http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mc d_faq/student_research.html
To "be our customers' favorite place and way to eat." Our worldwide operations have been aligned around a global strategy called “The Plan to Win,” centering on the five basics of an exceptional customer experience: 1. People 2. Products 3. Place 4. Price 5. Promotion We are committed to improving our operations and enhancing our customers' experience. http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mcd_faq/stu dent_research.html?DCSext.destination=http://www.aboutmcdon alds.com/mcd/our_company/mcd_faq/student_research.html
McDonald’s has been known for a long time as a place that promotes bad food as good food by using toys and playgrounds to attract unsuspecting children. Some parents view McDonald’s as a fast and easy way to feed their kids that is inexpensive, too. Many lawsuits have been filed against McDonald’s for making people overweight and obese. We’re going to take a closer look at some of the antiMcDonald’s campaigns out there, and give you information that will help you sort through the opinions and find the facts.
A documentary film released in 2004 by filmmaker Morgan Spurlock. Spurlock decided that in order to show the negative effects of fast food, specifically McDonald’s, on the human body, he would consume it for every meal for 30 days.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
He made it his mission to eat everything on the McDonald’s menu through the course of the experiment and any time the question was asked, he choice to “Super Size” his meal, an option that was removed for good from the McDonald’s menu in December 2009.
Spurlock’s results: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦
Gained 24 ½ lbs., a 13% body mass increase Cholesterol level of 230 Mood swings and fat accumulation in his liver It took Spurlock 14 months to lose the weight gained from the experiment
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
Things to keep in mind: ◦ According to the McDonald’s website, a Big Mac contains 490 calories. Since Spurlock was consuming 5,000 calories per day, he would’ve had to eat 10.2 Big Macs per day to reach that calorie intake. ◦ A meal with a Big Mac, large fry and a large soda is 1,250 calories (which is definitely more than the recommended amount for one meal for an average adult). Even if he were to eat three meals of that size every day though, it still only adds up to 3,750 calories per day. ◦ The result is that in order to eat 5,000 calories per day, Spurlock was really packing in food. ◦ The results of Spurlock’s experiment were only presented in his movie, no actual data was published or subjected to any additional tests or review. The biggest problem is that Spurlock’s results are very different from any other research on the same subject.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
A team of scientists was asked to examine the practicality of the experiment by Spurlock and run their own experiment as well The conditions of the experiment:
◦ The subjects of the experiment were required to consume a measured 6,000 calories per day compared to Spurlock’s 5,000. ◦ The food was controlled make sure that most of the calories were from saturated fats. ◦ The subjects were not allowed to exercise at all during the 30 days, unlike Spurlock who made sure he walked a normal distance every day.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
The results of the experiment: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦
All participants did gain 5-15% extra body weight Complaints of feeling tired No other negative effects were reported by the participants The scientists and doctors noticed no other dangerous changes at all
The doctors were not able to examine Spurlock, but they were asked to provide their professional opinion of Spurlock’s body’s extreme reaction The hypothesis reached was:
◦ Spurlock’s normally vegetarian diet may have made his liver poorly prepared to suddenly deal with a diet high in carbohydrates and saturated fat, a problem that anyone eating a normal diet would not experience.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
McDonald’s response to Super Size Me was fairly low-key They agreed it’s best to eat a balanced diet, and stated that any actual negative effects Spurlock experienced were more the result of force-feeding himself 5,000 calories a day for a month than of anything bad about McDonald’s food. Way too much of any food is going to be bad for you.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
Dr. Dean Edell – respected physician and host of The Dr. Dean
Edell Radio Program
Took a call from a woman whose teenage daughter ate a fast food hamburger every day. The woman was worried her daughter would develop malnutrition. Dr. Edell explained that she would most likely gain weight if she ate a lot of them, but malnutrition is the last thing she should worry about. “A hamburger is actually quite a balanced meal, rich with just about every nutrient. Add a slice of cheese and it even contains all four food groups. Hamburgers are excellent sources of protein, calcium and iron.” – Dr. Dean Edell
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
As far as sodium, ideally, an average adult should take in 1,500mg of sodium per day and not more than 2,000mg. A Big Mac contains 1,040mg of sodium, about 2/3 of your daily ideal. This isn’t a problem by itself, but don’t eat three of them. A Big Mac delivers 10g of saturated fat, which is 10g more than you want, but it’s virtually impossible to have zero.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommend that you keep your saturated fat intake under 7% of your daily caloric intake, the Big Mac fulfills half of that. In short, two Big Macs per day maxes out your recommended safe levels of saturated fat. The Big Mac’s 75mg of cholesterol represents ¼ of the CDC and WHO daily recommended maximum. Chances are a person isn’t going to eat four of them in a day so it’s not a problem.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
Finally, trans-fats. It is possible to eliminate the addition of trans-fats to fried foods, however some foods, like meat and some vegetables, contain naturally occurring trans-fat. 2-5% of the fat in livestock is trans-fat. Whether you order a Big Mac or barbecue your own organic filet mignon, you’re getting trans-fat. McDonald’s doesn’t add it, your neighborhood butcher has no way of reducing it. A Big Mac contains 1.5g of trans-fat, which is more than you want, but only about 8% of the daily amount of the World Health Organization say you need to keep it under.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwellbeing.health
Most people are familiar with the story of the woman who posted a picture of a hamburger that she uses as a prop for a class she teaches on how to help parents keep their kids away from junk food. The hamburger, one that was purchased at McDonald’s, is the same one she’s been using for years and it looks almost identical to how it did the day she bought it. A study was done on this concept and posted online, complete with pictures, which can be found at the link below. The results concluded that because of the small size and large surface area, the burger loses moisture very quickly. Without moisture, there’s no mold or bacteria growth. Of course, the meat is pretty sterile to begin with due to high cooking temperatures. Think about how beef jerky is made! http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-lab-revisiting-the-myth-of-the-12year-old-burger-testing-results.html
The real offenders aren’t the burgers, but the drinks, especially the milkshakes and McCafe beverages. McDonald’s 32 oz. Chocolate Triple Thick Shake packs 1,160 calories. A more common size, the 16 oz., is 580 calories, 90 more calories than a Big Mac.
A large Caramel Frappe is 680 calories and contains 88 grams of sugar. Even a small Frappe is 450 calories and has almost 60 grams of sugar depending on the flavor.
http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf
Calories and fat aren’t the only thing to keep in mind when it comes to fast food. You have to be mindful of sodium and sugars as well.
The Angus and bacon cheeseburger has 2070mg of sodium and most of the items on the breakfast menu have a sodium content of 1,000mg or more. The McFlurry desserts pack between 70 and 90g of sugar each and every shake on the menu contains between 65 and 170g of sugar. The recommended daily intake of sugar is 20g for women, 36g for men and 12g for children. If an adult male were to drink even one small Frappe, he’d be taking in almost twice his daily recommended amount of sugar.
http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf
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Salads (with low fat dressing, grilled chicken and without croutons), snack size fruit and yogurt parfait, apple dippers, grilled chicken snack wrap, or a small milk.
http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf
Before you go to McDonald’s, check out their website, and use their “Bag a McMeal” feature. http://www1.mcdonalds.com/bagamcmeal/ This allows you to plan out what you order and check the nutrition information ahead of time so you know exactly how many calories and how much fat, sodium and sugar you’ll be consuming. STICK TO YOUR PLAN when you get to the restaurant!
http://www1.mcdonalds.com/bagamcmeal/
It’s important to eat a well-balanced meal that contains items from every food group for each meal. Fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains low fat dairy and a touch of healthy oil and fat will help you be the best you can be! Fast food is a “sometimes food.” It’s OK to eat every now and again as a treat, but not every day or even every week. It’s best to stick to once a month or less.
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http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/csr/about/nutrition___wellbei ng.html http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mcd_faq/stude nt_research.html http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/the-burger-labrevisiting-the-myth-of-the-12-year-old-burger-testing-results.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2006/sep/07/healthandwell being.health
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http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/nutritionfacts.pdf
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http://www1.mcdonalds.com/bagamcmeal/