I didn't take "Fast Food Nation" as PETA propaganda, but rather as a criticism of our unhealthy, high-calorie lifestyle.
I do think the film does a good job of showing how damaging fast food can be to us if eaten more than occasionally (which we still do, even after seeing the film), and that a healthy diet rich in fruits and veggies and whole grains is important to good health.
I was talking about the
BOOK Fast Food Nation. I never picked up any PETA-type messages in it (there was a whole chapter devoted to potatoes, though).
The author also discussed the dangers of marketing fast food to children and was concerned about children eating so much of it. He also said that he "ate an enormous amount of fast food" (page 9) during the two years that he researched the book, so he doesn't sound like he's advocating for PETA. He came across as being pretty balanced.
As a reference to an earlier post about french fries, the ones sold in fast food restaurants (and likely most others) are flavored with a laundry list of additives. The additives give food flavor and make it appear to be fresh longer.
Additives also extend to many other food products; as an example, Fast Food Nation list the (very) many additives that make a Burger King strawberry shake taste like strawberries. You can see the book
online at Google books; go to the bottom of page 125 for the list of additives in the Burger King shake.
I'm going to relate this to education by saying that our schools do a woeful job about teaching their students about even the basics of nutrition and why eating non-processed food is so important. Lack of education is a huge reason underlying a lot of problems in this country.
Val
