Diabetics risk the same health problems from fast food that affect anyone with a poor diet, as well as some that are condition specific. If you have type 2 diabetes, high-calorie drive-thru meals may have contributed to you acquiring the disease. As the Office of the Surgeon General relates, more than 80 percent of diabetics are overweight or obese.
Too many sugar and starch carbohydrates -- found in regular soft drinks, french fries and hamburger buns -- negatively affect diabetics' blood glucose levels. So, the excess calories from typical fatty meats and sugary drinks and desserts, plus an overload of carbs, create elevated health risks for individuals with diabetes.
Obesity
Everyone who regularly indulges in fast food burgers, tacos, fried chicken or fried fish can gain weight, and without weight-loss effort, add to it and become obese. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) notes that high-fat menu items, which include double-meat sandwiches, extra cheese, chili, biscuits, breaded and fried foods and some salad dressings, rack up calories, frequently totaling over 1,000 calories per meal.
Obesity, or a body mass index of 30 or greater, restricts mobility, complicates pregnancy and contributes to incontinence and sleep apnea, as the Office of the Surgeon General relates. Additionally, a weight gain of just 10 to 20 pounds brought on by a poor diet raises your health risk for premature death from any cause.
Chronic Disease
The USDA Nutrient Database lists popular fast foods such as submarine sandwiches, cheeseburgers, fried shrimp and biscuit breakfast sandwiches among all foods highest in salt and cholesterol. Poor diets that are high in sodium and cholesterol create health risks for cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis, which can lead to heart disease.
Conditions of overweight and obesity increase the health risks for contracting cancer as well as heart disease and asthma, as per the Office of the Surgeon General. Potentially fatal medical emergencies such as heart attacks, strokes and respiratory failure may follow.
Diabetes Complications
According to the ADA, the average nutritional makeup of fast food meals can raise your blood glucose beyond it healthy target range, as defined by your physician. This state of hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar, is a major factor in developing diabetes complications.
These health problems include neuropathy, or nerve damage, that harms the extremities and alters digestion and other body function. Diabetics also risk glaucoma, skin infection, kidney disease and stroke, whether or not they have heart conditions.
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