Fast food is a popular food choice that can be located in any major city along busy streets. The fast food restaurants provide a quick and easy option to satisfy hunger. A burger and fries is a common order for fast food, filled with calories, carbohydrates, fat and protein.
Calories
Calories found in one serving--about 160 g--of french fries contain between 500 and 570 calories. The majority of the calories come from fat and carbohydrates. Burgers, such as the Burger King Whopper and McDonald's Big Mac, contain 790 calories and 563 calories, respectively. The calories are split between carbohydrates, fat and protein with 436 fat calories, 212 carbohydrate calories and 140 protein calories in the Whopper. The Big Mac contains 295 fat calories, 176 carbohydrate calories and 104 protein calories.
Carbohydrates
Nutrition facts for carbohydrates are displayed in total carbohydrates, dietary fiber and sugars. French fries will contain about 57 to 70 g of carbohydrates. The Whopper contains 53 g of total carbohydrates that is split into 3 g of fiber and 13 g of sugars. The Big Mac contains 44 g of total carbohydrates, 4 g of fiber and 9 g of sugars.
Fat
More than 50 percent of the total calories in a burger and fries come from fat. French fries contain about 30 g of total fat, 6 g of saturated fat and 6 to 8 g of trans fat. The Whopper contains 48 g of total fat, 18 g of saturated fat and 1 g of trans fat. The Big Mac contains 33 g of total fat, 8 g of saturated fat and 1 g of trans fat.
Protein
Most fast food burgers contain a significant amount of protein which accounts for about 18 percent of total calories in burgers. The Whopper contains 35 g of protein and the Big Mac contains 26 g.
Inflammation Factor
The IF (inflammation factor) of foods is a rating that provides an estimate of the inflammatory or anti-inflammatory effect of foods. A positive number is considered to be anti-inflammatory by providing certain nutrients such as selenium and folate. Negative numbers may indicate an inflammatory response in the body that typically comes from saturated fat. Since fast food is high in saturated fat, burgers are considered to be moderately inflammatory with IF scores of about -138 to -192.
Glycemic Index
The glycemic index is a tool used to measure a food's effect on blood sugar levels. Healthy daily totals will be less than 100. A burger can contain 20 to 25 of the glycemic index daily totals.
Vitamins & Minerals
Fast food is not a significant source of vitamins and minerals but burgers contain calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin C and iron. For example, the Big Mac contains 8 percent of the recommended daily value of Vitamin A, 25 percent of calcium, 1 percent of Vitamin C and 24 percent of iron.
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