McDonald’s restaurants are the very epitome of poor health, with their McNuggets most notably containing chemicals used in breast implants and silly putty, so why have the Olympic games officials adopted the restaurant chain as their official restaurant of the Olympics? Considering the Olympic games represent some of the most conditioned athletes across the globe, it seems quite bizarre that the face of the entire event would be that of Ronald McDonald.

With the media frenzy surrounding the Olympic games, it’s easy to see why McDonald’s continues to be a major sponsor (dishing out cash for over 35 years). A massive marketing opportunity is presented to the company that involves aligning itself with a ‘healthy’ and fit event. In fact, McDonald’s is reaping in the benefits as even some of the most decorated Olympic finalists are chomping down on their disease-linked frankenburgers. It was reported that ‘the most highly decorated Olympian’ Michael Phelps gorged himself at McDonald’s after winning a gold medal at the Olympics.

Phelps and fellow gold medalist Ricky Berens reportedly ate a toxic feast of two Quarter Pounders with cheese, one six-piece McNugget (each of which contains 7 different ingredients to compose the fake chicken ‘meat’), a medium McFlurry, and two medium french fries. Great news for McDonald’s, bad news for viewers.

McDonald’s fast food has been linked in scientific research to depression, with those who ate fast food 51 percent more likely to be depressed than those consuming very little or none of the food. McDonald’s has also been heavily criticized for including ‘pink slime’ into their products, which is essentially scrap meat drenched in ammonium hydroxide. And that’s really not the worst of it.

Taking another look at the highly popular McNuggets, it’s easy to see why McDonald’s food items contain some of the most concerning chemicals in the entire food industry. The kind that athletes and viewers looking to live a healthy lifestyle should avoid at all costs. McNuggets contain a large list of ingredients, including autolyzed yeast extract (similar to MSG), dimethylpolysiloxane (a type of silicone being phased out as a breast implant substance due to safety concern), safflower oil (often genetically modified), and of course butylhydroquinone (derived from petroleum to ‘preserve freshness’).

So why is it that McDonald’s is the official restaurant of the Olympics? It seems that the corporation is desperate to attach to athletic events in order to push itself as a health-conscious chain, when in reality it is likely one of the largest contributors to the breeding of disease in the United States. But of course their executive likes to think differently. In a press release on how McDonald’s ‘cares about your health’ that sought to piggyback on the success of the Olympic games, one exec states:

“Customers recognize McDonald’s as a responsible, trusted brand that stays current with their lifestyles.”

Could it be any more obvious just how little this company actually cares about your health? McDonald’s has no place being the official restaurant of any event or organization supposedly representing the face of health and fitness across the globe.