Today, the majority of people in most of the developed world get more than half their calories from processed, fast, and fake foods. The fast food health risks are shocking. Fast food have many side effects. Fast and processed foods are common today. But they may be more destructive for our health and for society as a whole than you ever imagined. Fast food is typically poor in terms of nutrition. Fast food is typically high in sugar, salt, and saturated or fats. The body’s reaction to these nutrients results in a range of short-term impacts when a person eats fast food. Children are also developing habits and tastes that will affect them as they become adults. If kids eat fast foods often, it will harder for them to break those patterns later in life. And childhood eating habits have far-reaching consequences.
Side Effects:
- Blood Pressure
- Increased Inflammation
- Gain Weight
- Risk Of Heart Attack
- Kidney & Stomach Issue
- Cholesterol level
- Weak Bones
- Dental Problem
Does fast food cause health problems?
- Blood Pressure:
Fast food have bad effect on health. Consuming high levels of salt could immediately impact the proper functioning of a person’s blood vessels. Excess sodium intake also has links to fluid retention.
- Increased Inflammation:
A single serving of fast food could increase inflammation throughout the body. Found that one fast food meal high in saturated fat increased airway inflammation in individuals with asthma. This inflammation acts as a trigger for asthma attacks.
- Weak Bones:
Researchers compared the bone mineral density and bone mineral content of children at birth, and then at age 4 or 6, to the number of supermarkets, healthy specialty stores and fast food outlets in their neighborhood. A higher number of fast food outlets in the neighborhood were tied to lower bone mineral density and bone mineral content in newborns. A high sodium intake can cause your bones to weaken, leading to possible osteoporosis, Shapiro warns.
- Weight Gain:
Nowadays, the prevalence of both fast food consumption and overweight/obesity has been increased. The prevalence of fast food consumption and to assess its association with abdominal and general obesity. If a person eats more calories than they burn each day, they gain weight, which may lead to obesity.
- Heart Attack:
The sodium in fast food isn’t the only thing that increases your risk of a heart attack. Burgers, chicken, pizza, and other foods from restaurant chains contain a lot of saturated fat (not to be confused with monounsaturated fats, or healthy fats, which are found in foods like avocados, peanut butter, nut, and olive oil). Saturated fat increases the cholesterol numbers and lines the walls of the arteries that can lead to a heart attack.
- Cholesterol level:
Fast food have many negative effects on health. Many fast foods served are derived from animal products, deep fried and served with cheese and high-fat dipping sauces. “The high fat content in fast food can contribute to high cholesterol. Eating too much saturated fat can drive up your LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol, which puts you at risk for heart diseases.
- Dental Problem:
Frequent soda intake can lead to poor oral health. Drinking large amounts of soda increases the amount of acid in your mouth, which eventually causes tooth decay and cavities.
Sugar Intake Per Day
- Men
According to AHA guidelines, most men should consume no more than 150 discretionary calories of sugar per day. This is equivalent to 38 g or 9 teaspoons (tsp) of sugar.
- Women
Women should use no more than 100 discretionary calories on sugar per day. This is around 25 g or 6 tsp of sugar.
- Children
Children between the ages of 2 and 18 should consume no more than 25 g, or 6 tsp, of added sugar daily.
How do fast food and processed foods affect the health of children?
Children who consume nutrient-rich diets have been found to perform better academically than those who are nutrient-deficient.
Well-fed children have been found to be:
- Less hyperactive
- Less moody
- More cooperative
Children are also developing habits and tastes that will affect them as they become adults. If kids eat fast foods often, it will harder for them to break those patterns later in life.