They’re NOT lovin’ it: ‘Healthiest town in America’ fights plan to get McDonald’s
The California town of Loma Linda, a center of the Seventh Day Adventist church, is up in arms against a McDonald’s proposed for the town.
Considered one of the healthiest towns in the world with some of the longest-living residents, many church members believe maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a religious obligation.
Most are vegetarians and they consider McDonald’s, with its fatty hamburgers and high-calorie French fries, to be contrary to their religious teachings and an affront to the healthy lifestyle they have developed in the town.
Residents of Loma Linda oppose the town’s decision to allow McDonald’s to build its first restaurant there
‘McDonald’s does not fit the Loma Linda brand of health and wellness,’ Dr Wayne Dysinger, head of preventive medicine at the Adventist Loma Linda University Medical Center told the Los Angeles Times.
‘Compare it to smoking laws: There’s no question that smoking is harmful to people’s health. Exposing people to fast food also is harmful to their health.’
Loma Linda is a town where smoking has been banned for 30 years and alcohol is not sold within city limits.
So when McDonald’s received permission from the town council to build a store in Loma Linda, town leaders faced backlash from their constituents.
Dysinger told the Times residents are beginning to organize a petition that would limit the number of fast food restaurants allowed in the town of 23,000.
The town a hub of the Seventh Day Adventist church and home to Loma Linda University Medical Center (pictured)
‘Plus, every city councilman is an elected official,’ he added — a threat that anyone who supports to McDonald’s could be booted from office.
Loma Linda University and its world-renowned medical center were founded by Ellen G. White, a visionary in the Adventist religion who settled in the town.
The Seventh Day Adventist church, a Christian sect that celebrates Saturday as the sabbath, places a strong emphasis on having a healthy diet and a healthy lifestyle.
Health capital: Loma Linda, California, was named one of four ‘blue zones’ in the world, for having a high number of active residents in their 90s and 100s
Considered one of the healthiest towns in the world with some of the longest-living residents, many church members believe maintaining a healthy lifestyle is a religious obligation.
Most are vegetarians and they consider McDonald’s, with its fatty hamburgers and high-calorie French fries, to be contrary to their religious teachings and an affront to the healthy lifestyle they have developed in the town.
Residents of Loma Linda oppose the town’s decision to allow McDonald’s to build its first restaurant there
‘McDonald’s does not fit the Loma Linda brand of health and wellness,’ Dr Wayne Dysinger, head of preventive medicine at the Adventist Loma Linda University Medical Center told the Los Angeles Times.
‘Compare it to smoking laws: There’s no question that smoking is harmful to people’s health. Exposing people to fast food also is harmful to their health.’
Loma Linda is a town where smoking has been banned for 30 years and alcohol is not sold within city limits.
So when McDonald’s received permission from the town council to build a store in Loma Linda, town leaders faced backlash from their constituents.
Dysinger told the Times residents are beginning to organize a petition that would limit the number of fast food restaurants allowed in the town of 23,000.
The town a hub of the Seventh Day Adventist church and home to Loma Linda University Medical Center (pictured)
‘Plus, every city councilman is an elected official,’ he added — a threat that anyone who supports to McDonald’s could be booted from office.
Loma Linda University and its world-renowned medical center were founded by Ellen G. White, a visionary in the Adventist religion who settled in the town.
The Seventh Day Adventist church, a Christian sect that celebrates Saturday as the sabbath, places a strong emphasis on having a healthy diet and a healthy lifestyle.
Health capital: Loma Linda, California, was named one of four ‘blue zones’ in the world, for having a high number of active residents in their 90s and 100s
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