The Unhealthy American Diet
Obesity is a major problem in the United States. Here is a glimpse of what Americans eat to satisfy their cravings.
Food Supply and Demand
In a country where obesity is a huge problem, there are scores of eateries that serve up unhealthy food in vast quantities. Equally, there are millions of customers who sustain an industry based on providing food that is harmful to people.
The Gross Numbers
The Diet Quality Index measures health outcomes based on the kind of food people eat.
A score of 100 represents the healthiest diet it's possible to have; in general, Americans score a miserable 11. Such a low number means a greatly increased risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and many other life-threatening diseases.
Americans rack up some horrible numbers when it comes to what they eat and what they don't eat. Here's nutritionfacts.org:
- "On a weekly basis, 96 percent of Americans don't reach the minimum for greens or beans (three servings a week for adults), 98 percent don't reach the minimum for orange vegetables (two servings a week), and 99 percent don't reach the minimum for whole grains (about three to four ounces a day)."
- While Americans go short on good food, they make up for this by consuming bad food. The recommended daily allowance for salt is less than 2,300 milligrams (mg); the average American takes in 3,400 mg a day. It's a similar story with sugar; the daily recommendation is no more than six teaspoons for women and nine for men, but consumption is 17 teaspoons. The ingestion of animal fats, highly processed packaged foods, and fast foods are all off the charts.
What this leads to is that six out of 10 Americans are dealing with a chronic disease that, at least in part, can be traced to poor diet, while 42 percent of the country's population is obese.
So, here is a glimpse of what Americans eat to satisfy their craving for the wrong foods and where they go to get it, by region.
It's called junk food for a reason.
The West
- All over the United States, there are more hideously unhealthy burgers on offer than you can shake a sesame seed bun at. Choices have to be made, so representing the genre is the Heart Attack Grill in Tempe, Arizona, which serves up the Quadruple Bypass Burger. It packs 8,000 calories in its four patties and other rubbish, and it comes with access to an all-you-can-eat French fry bar. But hey, potatoes are vegetables, aren't they?
- California is not all tofu and alfalfa sprouts; it's also home of the 54-inch by 54-inch pizza. This comes from a humongous oven at Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria in Burbank. It weighs 50 pounds, and the challenge is that a team of seven can't eat the whole thing in two hours. If the gourmands can beat the clock, the pizza is free. Otherwise, it's $300+.
East Coast
- The Vermonster starts with 20 scoops of ice cream, four bananas, three cookies, and a brownie. But wait, there's more—hot fudge or caramel, walnuts, whipped cream, and a choice of four toppings. It's a creation of Ben & Jerry's and is popular in New England. It contains 500 grams of fat and 14,000 calories.
- Darrell Butler attended Rutgers University in the late 1990s. Feeling a little peckish, he created a sandwich that takes his name. The Fat Darrell comes in a variety of guises but usually includes chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, and French fries stuffed into a large bun and smothered in marinara sauce. You're looking at 45 grams of fat—a full day's allowance in one meal.
- Also springing from a seat of learning where the nation's future leaders hone their intellects is the Rochester Garbage Plate. This dish, invented by University of Rochester students in the 1990s, is a mountain of carbohydrates built on a foundation of macaroni and cheese and French fries. Then come the hamburger patties, baked beans, onions, and meat-based chili sauce. It's said that if it looks appetizing it hasn't been made properly.
This Rochester Garbage Plate looks suitably disgusting.
The South
- Mississippi has one of the highest obesity rates in the union. Could it be because of Mississippi mud pie, a mixture of sugar, chocolate, cream, and butter? Oreo cookies, cream cheese, and other fattening ingredients are usually tossed in. Just a small slice please, because you are not going to eat the whole thing, are you? Are you?
- Amarillo is home to the Big Texan Steak Ranch. The legend started in 1960 when 12 diners sat down to see who could devour a 72-ounce steak and trimmings first. The monster slab of beef, all 4,500 calories of it, has been on the menu ever since, and thousands have tackled it; in the majority of cases, the steak wins.
The Plains
- Diners have referred to the Bacon Bomb as a "big, fatty blob." This five-pound behemoth emerges from the kitchen of Paddy Long's Beer and Bacon Pub in Chicago, which revels in the title of "bacon lover's nirvana." The Bomb is a combination of sausage, beef, and pork with a wrapping of woven bacon.
- It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of the Ultimate Destroyer. Until 2018, this confection was served up by Papa Bob's Bar-B-Que in Bonner Springs, Kansas. A foot-long bun was stuffed with six pounds of deli meats. And, just in case there was a small empty corner in the diner's stomach, the sandwich came with half a pound of fries. There was the usual challenge of eat-it-in-45-minutes-and-it's-free. Perhaps, too many customers were successful because the restaurant closed.
- The B&B Grocery in Des Moines, Iowa throws down the challenge of the Killosal (colossal?) Sandwich. MoneyInc.com tells us, "The sandwich combo features four cheeseburgers, a heap of veggies, deli meats, and a pork tenderloin."
Assorted Food Challenges
After a while, this journey through supersized dishes becomes sickeningly repetitive. You are no longer astonished by the appearance of the:
- The three-pound Texas Broomstick hot dog with jalapenos, chili sauce, nacho cheese, and fried onions.
- The Big Pink Simpsons Donut at Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida. It's eight-inches in diameter, weighs just under a pound, and packs how many calories? Who cares?
- Sold online, the 26-pound gummy bear is advertised as a party item with 32,000 calories.
- Kenny and Ziggy's New York Delicatessen offers the eight-decker Zellagabetsky, which includes "corned beef, pastrami, turkey, roast beef, salami, tongue, and Swiss cheese" with coleslaw and Russian dressing between each layer.
- Mama's on the Hill in St. Louis, Missouri has a spaghetti challenge. Four-and-a-half pounds of spaghetti noodles drenched in marinara sauce with a three-pound meatball on top.
After that, dinner tonight will be a single leaf of Boston lettuce and a lightly poached caraway seed.
“Americans will eat garbage provided you sprinkle it liberally with ketchup.”
— Writer Henry James
Bonus Factoids
- Americans spend about $650 billion a year on fast food.
- Americans eat 20 percent of their meals in their cars.
- More than 10 billion donuts are eaten in the United States every year.
- In 2021, CNN ran a feature on the 50 best dishes created in America. Included in the list were Twinkies, potato chips, and popcorn, which tells us something about U.S. cuisine; we're just not sure what, although we suspect it is not complimentary.
Sources
- “Why Is American Food so Unhealthy?” Steven Reinberg, U.S. News, January 17, 2023.
- “Standard American Diet.” nitritionfacts.org, undated.
- “Sandwich Monday: The Bacon Bomb.” Ian Chillag, NPR, March 28, 2011.
- “25 Supersized Foods Only Found in the U.S.” Logan Sawyer, thetravel.com, October 28, 2018.
- “These Restaurants Serve Instagram-Worthy Giant Food.” USA Today, April 20, 2018.
- “These Are the Gut-Busting Food Challenges You Can Try Throughout the Houston Area and Texas.” Heather Leighton, Houston Chronicle, August 6, 2019.
- “American Food: The 50 Greatest Dishes.” Dana Joseph, CNN, January 16, 2021.
This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
© 2023 Rupert Taylor
