The Dollar Menu

Food Inc. Documentary Processed foods are less expensive then

healthier foods because many of the ingredients come from crops subsided by the federal government.

Lower income families are likely to eat cheaper processed foods, suffer from obesity, and therefore, have diabetes.

Low-priced calories, is one of the reasons why the biggest means of obesity is low income level.

Food Inc. Discussion Guide The federal government spends $35 billion

each year subsidizing commodity crops. This has lowered the price of crops such as: Corn Soybean

Fast Food is cheap because all of it’s ingredients contain one or more subsided ingredients.

Most processed foods contain high-fructose corn syrup.

Huffpost Healthy Living Researchers at Harvard School found that:

Unhealthy eating is $1.50 cheaper per day for person, or about $550 per year, then healthy food.

“Hidden health costs like our global obesity epidemic and the food-related public health issue of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer are certainly not included in the cost or your fast food meal.” (Ellen Gustafson)

Fast Food and Diabetes

o Consuming fast food even once a week will increases the risk of dying from coronary heart disease by 20 percent.

o Eating fast food two or more times a week will increases the risk of Type 2 diabetes by 27 percent.

o 1 in 3 Americans born after 2000 will contract early onset diabetes.

Terms or Concepts

1. Processed Foods2. Commodity Crops3. Subsidized Ingredients 4. Specialty Crops5. Low-Income Families 6. Farm Subsidy System7. Diabetes 8. Obesity9. Heart Disease 10. Eating Habits

Critical Questions Do you think that all food is either

cheap or healthy?How have government polices

affected the cost of our food?How are low-income families being

affected by cheap priced processed foods?