Fast food restaurants are notorious for offering unhealthy options full of excess calories, sodium, refined flours, sugar, and saturated and trans fats. While it is better to prepare meals at home using fresh produce and lean proteins, it is possible to make healthy choices when you are faced with a fast food meal. With many restaurants offering variety and appealing to more health-conscious consumers, it is easier to make healthy choices.
Step 1
Choose whole grain options at breakfast instead of refined-flour products such as biscuits, danishes, doughnuts or white flour bagels. Select a yogurt parfait with granola, oatmeal or whole grain bagel. Skip syrups, butter and full-fat cream cheese.
Step 2
Order burgers without the extras. Opt for a single patty and skip the cheese, special sauces, bacon and guacamole. Stick to pickles, lettuce and tomato, onions, ketchup and mustard.
Step 3
Order a dry baked potato, fruit cup or side salad instead of french fries. Alternatively, order a small-size fries over a large if you cannot live without them and save, on average, 200 to 250 calories and 10 or more grams of fat.
Step 4
Choose soft tacos over large burritos, crispy shells or nachos when dining at Mexican fast food places to limit your intake of refined grains. Select grilled chicken over pork or beef and skip cheese and sour cream, which add saturated fat, too much of which can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, says the American Heart Association.
Step 5
Stay away from fried sandwiches, including fish and chicken, and other fried items such as chicken nuggets, fish planks and hush puppies. These often contain trans fats, saturated fats and excessive calories.
Step 6
Minimize the amount of dressing you put on fast food salads. Use no dressing or use only 1/3 of a packet. For example, one pouch of Caesar dressing at McDonald's contains 190 calories, 18 g of fat and 500 mg of sodium. Although light dressings contain fewer calories and less fat, they usually contain more sodium--so limit their use as well.
Step 7
Skip soda and choose water, 100 percent juice or milk instead. Stay away from milkshakes and "smoothies" altogether, as these contain too much sugar and fat. For example, a medium chocolate shake from Burger King contains 103 g of sugar and 12 g of saturated fat. The American Heart Association recommends you obtain between 24 and 36 g of sugar daily at the most.
Tips and Warnings
- Many fast food restaurants post their nutrition information in the restaurant or online. Read up before you order to make the most informed and healthiest choices possible.
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