Entry #9. Who Influences Your Plate?

                                                    

    Who influences your plate? Many large companies spend millions of dollars so that you want to buy their product. They have so many advertisements that most of your decisions end up being unconscious. People have become so used to being influenced by the world around them that they end up making the wrong choices. All of the huge food industries above are very influential, but also so unhealthy. Though there is more awareness of how unhealthy their food is, people continue to be influenced by them. Why is this? Are people just so easily influenced, or do they simply not care about their health? Both options have truth to them.

                                                        

    By promoting unhealthy food, it shows how little large industries actually care about people or the health of the public. They spend so much money on ads so that people, in turn, spend lots of money on their products. Large food industries want to gain as much money as they can, so why do people give into them? Some people simply do not care about their health. They think, "I only live once, who cares what I eat." This is no way to live. By doing this, they actually miss out on more of life. They develop health problems, such as obesity, heart disease, and high blood pressure. These are just a few, but the worst outcome is death. Is eating whatever you want really worth dying early?

                                                 

    On the other hand, some people also do not realize what they are doing. They see ads and are easily influenced by them because the food is cheap and looks delicious. They do not think about the effects it will have on their health. They see others eating it so they think that it must not be too bad. People can be so easily influenced by others. Especially when they see that majority of people, or people with lots of power, are doing the same. That is why large food industries get celebrities to promote their brand. If someone sees a healthy, attractive, successful person in an ad, they think that there will be no negative effects. If the celebrity seems to be thriving, a person would be more inclined to want to buy the product. 

    It may seem surprising that these large food industries would spend $14.9 billion on advertising. However, by doing so they gain so much money in return. These industries know how easily people can be influenced by good marketing. So in instances when you feel influenced by an ad, it is important to figure out if you truly want or need the item, or if it is just the power of the advertisement.