You know the feeling when you have a craving for fast food? It's tough to resist. Not many places make it easy for us to “cheat” and eat unhealthy in subtle ways. But don't feel bad if you eat fast food from time to time, just make sure your “fast food habit” is not a regular thing in your life.
Fast food has become an unavoidable habit for many these days. We want it on demand, we want it cheap and quick, and we want it now and that's because it's convenient to eat whenever we're hungry, it's also much cheaper than buying fresh produce or paying $10 for a salad!
We have all been there. You are on the way home from work, tired and hungry, but there isn't time for a sit-down meal. So you order in. Or maybe you are out and about and you see an amazing-looking burger stand and decide to kill two birds with one stone by eating your lunch and saving a few bucks at the same time.
But listening to your body doesn't mean that you have the license to go hog wild and eat whatever you want without thinking about its impact on your health. If you are the type that eats fast food occasionally (or even every day), try to keep in mind that it's important to stay active while eating and you should make sure to exercise often, especially if you work from home.
The thing is, most of us don't realize how much we're doing to our bodies when we eat fast food. Sure it tastes great and it saves us all the hassle of having to cook, but here are a couple of things you should know before you order that extra-large burger.
1. Fast food contains lots of sugar. Too much sugar is bad for us and eating too much of it can actually make your cholesterol levels go up. That's right: Sugar will cause your blood pressure to rise and can increase your risk for heart disease. And let's not forget about trans fats, these are fats that have been artificially created by adding hydrogen.
2. Fast food often comes with unhealthy add-ons like extra cheese or salty toppings which make them taste better and more palatable, but they aren't good for your health in the long run either so you should avoid them whenever possible.
3. They are high in calories without much else going for them and if you're not careful, it can throw your weight control goals out the window. Because of the high amount of sodium, fat, and sugar they contain, it makes it very easy to gain a lot of weight, especially if you don't move around a lot or don't exercise often.
Instead of eating fast food every day, you can try eating at home more often. You can even cook your own food if that works better for you. But even if cooking isn't an option right now, there are lots of options out there that are pretty healthy and delicious. And here are some tips:
Make sure your meal has fewer calories than its normal counterpart. If something is advertised as "healthy" but contains more fat or calories than usual, just cut back on the unhealthy stuff (like fries).
Make sure everything on the menu is organic! The more natural ingredients in your food, the better!
Use fresh vegetables instead of processed ones
Choose whole grains over refined grains
Replace fried foods with grilled or baked versions
And a host of others
Conclusion
when you're eating healthy food, you're doing your body good. You're giving it the nutrients it needs to keep up with the rest of your day and night, and you're also helping yourself avoid sick days or other health problems. But when you go out for fast food, you're basically just tossing aside those healthy habits in exchange for some extra calories and sodium that might not actually be conducive to good health at all
If you eat fast food once every week or two, then that's fine but if your habit is to eat fast food three times a week or more, then there are plenty of reasons why you should switch things up!
Thanks for reading 💖💖💖
Tuesday August 2nd, 2022
*Original content, first published on hive
Some years back I wasn't a fan of fast food because I wasn't brought up that way but it can't be completely avoided, nah! I eat them occasionally now! Did you said it adds weight? I've been looking for this weight 🤣. The weight adding is not for everyone...kpako🤷