Fast food

Fast food is cheap, easy and quick. Fast food companies spend millions of dollars each year trying to make young people believe that fast food is cool. The average American eats three burgers and four orders of French fries a week. Is it surprising that 14% of American teenagers are obese?


A Read the following texts and match them with the correct expression, so that you get it in the correct order:
A Schools hold special education days for the food companies when fast food managers talk to the students. In March 1998, it was “Coke in Education Day” at Greenbrier High School in Georgia and some Coca-cola managers visited the school. About a thousand students went to the school parking lot dressed in red and white to spell out the word COKE. The photographer was ready to take photos when Mike Cameron suddenly showed his T-shirt which said Pepsi. The school principal immediately suspended Mike from school.
B Now, America is starting to fight back against the fast food companies. The two biggest states in the US, California and Texas, might stop serving fast food and soda in school cafeterias. The American government may bring in special laws for preventing and treating obesity.
C It’s fine to eat fast food occasionally as part of a healthy diet. But fast food is high in fat and calories. So if your favourite meal is burger and fries, you could easily become obese. Obesity could lead to other diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis.
D There’s no escape from fast food for American teens. Fast food companies give money to US schools to help them buy sports and computer equipment. In return, schools place advertisements for the fast food companies in their hallways and on the sides of their school buses. They also sell cheap fast food in school cafeterias and sponsor school books.
• 1. Eating fast food is a way of getting obese.                              
• 2. Schools as a place for advertisement.                                                              
• 3. Fast food is taking control over schools.                            
• 4. The fight against fast food. 

B Are these sentences true (T) or false (F):
1. It is healthy to eat fast food every day.
______________________________________________________
2. Fast food has a lot of calories.
______________________________________________________
3. Obesity is not related to other diseases.
______________________________________________________
4. There is no fast food in US schools cafeterias.
______________________________________________________

C Answer the following questions:
1. Why is it so easy to eat fast food?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Why do fast food companies give money to US schools?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. What did Mike Cameron do?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

D Match the words in US English with the right words in GB English:

1. order (of French fries)
2. French fries
3. soda
4. parking lot
5. (school) hallway
6. cafeteria    a. soft drink
b. (school) corridor
c. portion
d. chips
e. canteen
f. car park

E Write the correct word to the correspondent meaning:
in return          disease           cool           obese           to sponsor          advertisement

1. very attractive, fashionable, interesting etc in a way that people admire ____________
2. very fat in a way that is unhealthy _____________
3. a picture, set of words, or a short film, which is intended to persuade people to buy a product or use a service ______________
4. in exchange for ______________
5. an illness which affects a person, animal, or plant _______________
6. to pay for something in exchange for the right to advertise _______________

F Match the opposites:

1. cheap
2. easy
3. quick
4. big
5. healthy
6. high    a. slow
b. unhealthy
c. difficult
d. expensive
e. short
f. smal

G Circle the right modal verb:

1. You can/must eat fast food occasionally as part of a healthy diet.
2. If you eat many burgers and fries, you should/can easily become obese.
3. Obesity may/must lead to other diseases.
4. Fast food companies mustn’t/shouldn’t place advertisements in schools.
5. The government should/must ban fast food from school.
6. You can/should do exercise if you want to lose weight.
7. A healthy and varied diet can/must help to maintain a healthy body weight.
8. A good diet should/can help to reduce the risk of a number of diseases including heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis.