Fast food may be convenient, cheap and tasty, but it can have a drastic effect on your health. Fast foods contain saturated and trans fats, cholesterol and excessive calories and sugar. All of these damage your body. If eaten often, fast food can lead to serious health effects.
Calories
Fast food is usually extremely high in calories. This is the result of three factors: ingredients, cooking method and portion size. Fast foods usually contain ingredients high in fat such as meat and condiments, or high in sugar such as soda. Additionally, the way the food is cooked adds to the calorie problem. Foods that are processed or fried in oils are high in saturated and trans fats.
Another main problem is the portion sizes. Fast food meals often come in large portions, sometimes enough to feed two. The large portion sizes exacerbate the problem because they promote over eating. Excessive calorie intake can lead to weight gain and possibly obesity.
Saturated Fat
One of the biggest threats fast food presents to your health is the presence of saturated fat. Fast food items, especially those containing ingredients such as red meat or condiments like mayonnaise, are very high in saturated fat. Unlike unsaturated fat, saturated fat is extremely hazardous to your health. Saturated fat can raise your cholesterol and lead to weight gain. Additionally, these fats can cause heart disease. This occurs when saturated fats clog the arteries and restrict blood flow, which creates susceptibility to heart attacks and strokes.
Trans Fat
Fried and processed fast foods are highly concentrated with trans fat. Trans fats are just as dangerous as saturated fats, since they not only raise "bad" cholesterol low-density lipoprotein, but also deplete your body of the "good" kind of cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL). In addition, trans fats have been found to cause blood clots and increased levels of triglycerides in some patients.
Recommendations from the American Heart Association state that calories from trans fat should be less 1 percent of your total daily calories.
Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a major concern with fast foods. Fried and processed meats can greatly increase total cholesterol levels. This is extremely dangerous to your health; cholesterol clogs arteries. Clogged arteries can raise blood pressure and even cause heart attacks and strokes.
Soda
It is not just the food that can damage your health. Soda and sweetened drinks are just as bad. These beverages, commonly known as "liquid candy" because of their high sugar content, are packed with calories. A 32-oz. Coke, for example, has about 400 calories. Simply eliminating the soda from a meal can drastically reduce calories from a meal.
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