Before getting deep in research, let’s understand the meaning of junk food.
Junk food is food that has low nutritional value, typically produced in the form of packaged snacks needing little or no preparation. Read again: LOW NUTRITIONAL VALUE. Many of you will disagree with my point but references and research points towards a scary reality.
Junk food is poisoning so many levels in our body; it floods our liver, kidneys, and bloodstream with chemicals which have no means of processing it. It is loading our insides with way too many calories of vacant carbohydrates that have turned into stored fat, and monounsaturated fats that slow down the heart’s functioning. It induces oxidative stress that may increase cardiovascular disease and low-grade inflammation which could result in cancer.
As stated by the CDC, childhood obesity has doubled in children and tripled in teens since the last few decades. Children have a wonderful ability to remember advertisements which they have seen. Fast food entrepreneurs understand this, and lay out advertisements similarly. Research reveals powerful relationships between the increase in advertisements to non-nutritious foods and levels of youth obesity.
Based on study, junk food can do just as much damage to your body as a serious health condition. Take the example of diabetes, it is the end result of insulin resistance, developed over time as a consequence of chronically higher blood sugar levels. The accumulation of glucose from the bloodstream may result in organ damage since the kidneys are not able to process/eliminate blood glucose. This is referred to as diabetic liver disorder, and it plays a significant part in the 1.5 million deaths caused by diabetes each year.
It’s also addictive. The longer you consume fast foods, the more you crave it. One analysis discovered that food has been “a potentially addictive chemical that’s most likely, to make addiction in vulnerable people.” Should you eat fast food once a week or longer, you might be hooked to it. Researchers examined over 400 wrappers out of 27 fast-food chains across the nation and discovered that one-third of the packaging comprised fluorinated chemicals, that are famous for their ease-repellent properties. Sadly, this stain-resistant chemical has effects that are unhealthy.
After knowing this, many big brands have started taking customer surveys regarding what they think about their food. The brands include McDonald’s, Chick-Fil-A, KFC, and many other food brands, they have their own feedback portal like MyCFAVisit and MCDVoice survey, etc. This way they ask their customers about the food quality and the changes they want in the food items.
Another big reason to avoid fast food is that, these restaurants have been catering to customer needs to generate much healthier choices. The issue is, their definition of “healthy” is rather lax. Among the healthiest meals in Burger King, the Garden Fresh Salad Chicken Caesar using Tender Grill Chicken has nearly 500 calories and 28 grams of fat, and almost a day’s worth of salt.
An occasional treat won’t harm you, but don’t forget what that treat is doing to your own body. If you are not careful, junk food consumed in excess will have significant negative impacts on your body. A healthy life leads to a healthy lifestyle.