Commercial chain restaurants do have menu selections that fit into a good diet, but most fast foods carry heavy calorie counts. Sugars and fats added to natural food content can transform otherwise healthy items, such as milk and potatoes, into high-calorie foods.
Milk shakes and french fries aren't the greatest indulgences. Some sandwiches and entrees that you choose to satisfy your hunger and nutritional needs cross the line between acceptable and harmful dietary contributions. Whether you choose fatty dishes or super-size beyond healthy limits, foods with the worst calories threaten your weight.
Tuna Salad Sub
The FDA considers 2,000 calories per day a good dietary average, but many women and smaller-framed people may need only 1,500 or 1,200. Even at the average level, a tuna salad submarine sandwich on a 6-inch roll, with 584 calories, eats up more than 25 percent of your entire daily allowance in one high-calorie food. Adding a soda and potato chips can increase the total by 300 calories or more, and choosing a 12-inch sub can seriously tank a good diet.
Double or Triple Hamburger
The most common fast food offers many ways to super-size on calories. The American Heart Association notes that a single hamburger patty already outweighs the suggested meat serving of 3 oz.
Ordering a double-patty burger raises the regular calorie count from 512 to 576, and that's without cheese, bacon, beverages or side orders. A third patty sends calorie totals higher, leaving less room for good nutrition in your remaining meals of the day.
Tacos With the Works
According to the USDA Nutrient Database, a large taco carries 571 calories derived from a corn tortilla, oil, meat, cheese and other ingredients. Adding sour cream and guacamole makes this one of the worst fast foods for its calories from fat.
Egg Breakfast Sandwiches
Many fast foods start with a bread product, and some of the most high-calorie foods begin with a biscuit. Pile on an egg and sausage round, and this breakfast sandwich donates 562 calories to your good diet, without cheese, a beverage or side order. The American Diabetes Association suggests swapping an English muffin for the biscuit, for a savings of over 250 calories, as per the USDA.
Fried Fish or Chicken
Fried fish and fried chicken are already high-calorie foods, but place them on a bun and add a mayonnaise-based sauce, and you've got some of the worst caloric offenders. A fried fish sandwich with cheese has 523 calories, while a fried chicken fillet sandwich has 515, according to the USDA.
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