McDonald's Trims The Fat

As a reaction to increased health concerns about the dangers of foods high in saturated fat and trans fatty acids, McDonald's announced on Tuesday that it plans to reduce the amounts of both kinds of fat in their French fries, Chicken McNuggets, Filet-O-Fish sandwiches, and Hash Browns. The company said that starting in October, its restaurants will start using a new variety of corn and soybean cooking oil that they claim is high in polyunsaturated fats. Some health experts think polyunsaturated fats may help lower cholesterol levels.

The dangers of saturated fats have been known for decades, but trans fatty acids didn't become a problem until the 1980s and 1990s. During that time, a large number of food providers began using a solid type of vegetable oil that had a longer shelf life. In order to obtain that durability, the vegetable oil was put through a hydrogenation process that created trans fatty acids. Like saturated fats, it's believed that trans fatty acids fats raise cholesterol levels and increase the risk of heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States.

One of the world's most popular and most auspicious corporations, McDonald's has come under scrutiny recently not only because of the unhealthy nature of their food, but also due to claims of unfair labor practices, fears of tainted beef in Asia and Europe, an infamous and bizarre lawsuit involving scalding hot coffee, and what some see as the company's shameless cultural ubiquity. McDonald's spokesmen were quick to point out that the new recipe won't change their food's taste. Health experts were quick to note that the new recipe doesn't necessarily make the food any healthier.

For better or for worse, McDonald's has changed the way we live. Find out the how and the why in the titles below!

Grinding It Out
By Ray Kroc and Robert Anderson
In 1954, a 52-year-old Ray Kroc convinced the McDonald brothers that he should be the one to help them open up multiple versions of their fledgling hamburger stand, and a legend was born. Grinding It Out is the story of one of modern history's most successful and charismatic salesmen, told straight from the candid mouth of the man himself. Kroc may not have invented the concept of fast food, but he was certainly the driving force behind his company's eventual global domination. His book, a testament to thinking big, shows that accomplishment doesn't have to end with the onset of middle age.

McDonald's: Behind The Arches
By John F. Love
From the fast food giant's humble beginnings as a small group of hamburger stands in Southern California to the development of some of the most famous menu items to the corporation's eventual conquest of Europe and Asia; Behind The Arches doesn't appear to miss a single detail in what proves to be a long, eventful history. Even those who don't care for McDonald's food or their practices will find the story behind the creation of the "perfect fry" tough to resist. Love's thorough history of the world's largest restaurant chain is comprehensive and fascinating.

Golden Arches East: McDonald's In East Asia
Edited by James L. Watson
According to the five essays in Golden Arches East, McDonald's has grown to play as integral a role in daily East Asian life as it does in the United States. Surprisingly, the cultural anthropologists who contribute to the book don't necessarily consider this a bad thing. Examining the effects of McDonald's on Taipei, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Beijing, they recognize the many criticisms heaped upon McDonald's ambitions. However, the scholars decide to focus more on how the chain has adapted to each distinct culture, and how those cultures have lovingly assimilated McDonald's to the point where the fast food chain is no longer considered "foreign."

The Sign Of The Burger: McDonald's And The Culture Of Power
By Joe L. Kincheloe
Presented partly as a memoir, Sign Of The Burger takes a discerning and intricate look at the complex role McDonald's plays in American and global culture. As a young boy growing up in Appalachia, Kincheloe saw the arrival of McDonald's in his rural universe as the ultimate sign of modernity. It isn't until later, when Kincheloe travels all over the world, that he begins to wonder whether the implications and actual meaning of McDonald's runs much deeper. Kincheloe's engrossing study seeks to explain the sophisticated reality behind something that on the outside seems so innocent and trivial.

Fast Food Nation
By Eric Schlosser
A past Book Sense 76 pick!
"The author shines a light on the fact that it is impossible for the average American consumer to experience a transaction that doesn't involve processing of some kind. This book is vital reading for everyone who is fighting the battle against big chains, homogenization, and globalization. This is the most thought-provoking nonfiction I've read in awhile." -- Juliana Wood, Bibelot, Baltimore, MD

• Read an interview with Eric Schlosser