Question: why on Earth is a restaurant chain that sells arguably unhealthy foods sponsoring events that should be all about health and physical fitness? Similarly, I've always thought it strange that soft drink companies sponsored sporting events. Sports and soft drinks are near opposites: one promotes activity and health, the other promotes diabetes and disease. Seeing McDonalds sponsor the Olympics is somewhat bizarre.
I believe McDonalds is at least partially responsible for America's obesity epidemic as well as accelerating rates of other chronic diseases. The products sold by McDonalds are high in saturated fat, high in processed carbohydrates, high in sodium, high in refined sugars (high fructose corn syrup in the soft drinks), and high in trans fatty acids (french fries). These food characteristics are unquestionably linked to diabetes, heart disease, obesity and even cancer. While McDonalds obviously isn't forcing anyone to eat their foods, they are in fact heavily promoting these foods and drinks without bothering to warn consumers of the subsequent health risks.
Now, McDonalds wants to expand in China, and there's little doubt that as the Western diet continues to invade Chinese culture, China will see rising rates of the very same diseases now considered epidemic in the United States. The rapid expansion of McDonalds restaurants and soft drink companies into the global marketplace is one reason why I describe the United States as the world's largest exporter of disease. Every country or region that starts consuming American foods experiences chronic disease within a generation.
These opinions are not popular with the McDonalds corporation, no doubt, but they are based in nutritional science.
Fast food outlet McDonald's has said it is planning almost to double
its outlets in China ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
McDonald's is about to announce that it will sponsor the 2006 winter
games in Turin, Italy; the 2010 winter Games in Vancouver, Canada; and
the 2012 summer games, as well as the Olympics in Beijing.
In China, the outlet operates 580 restaurants but expects that number
to increase to 1,000 by the time the 2008 games open.
"This year we'll build more restaurants in China than in any other
country," McDonald's executive Charlie Bell said.
He will participate in promotions tied to the Olympics, executives
said.