Fast Food Addiction: A Major Public Health Issue

Abstract

Fast food/Junk food is designed to be tasty, comforting and convenient. Unfortunately, whilst these foods contain lots of calories, they often have far lower levels of fiber, water and minerals as compared to natural foods. Packaged food and snacks are also created specifically so that we get enough texture and taste from each bite to tantalize our taste buds; but not enough to make us feel full. It's evident that fast food feels good to eat and tempts us in many different situations. Fast food first popularized in the 1970s in the United States, which has today the largest fast food industry in the world. As taste, time considerations, convenience, and cost are major factors that contribute to an adolescent's or young adult's food choices, fast food restaurants serve as popular sites for their meals eaten outside the home. Current approaches suggest that fast food restaurants should be required to clarify nutrition information such as energy and fat content on their menu boards and on product packaging. This is important to help the consumer to make better food choices before purchasing. An adequate, nutritious, and balanced diet is essential to maintain health for one's lifetime. To achieve this healthy diet, fast food consumption should be limited.

Evaluation of the nutritional quality of ultra‐processed foods (ready to eat + fast food): Fatty acids, sugar, and sodium

“…RTE and FF meals are the UPFs with a significant contribution to fat accumulation in the WD (Banik et al., 2020; Mohiuddin, 2019), which has been directly associated with the onset of major chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, atherosclerosis, among others (Juul et al., 2021; Shori et al., 2017; Zaretsky et al., 2021). Therefore, the quantification of total fat in RTE and FF meals is important to evaluate the actual dietary fat intake of adults and children who consume a large amount of UPFs.…”

Determinants of Junk Food Consumption Among Adolescents in Pokhara Valley, Nepal

“…Rapidly changing dietary practices and an increasing sedentary lifestyle predispose to obesity-related non-communicable diseases, including insulin resistance diabetes, neurodegeneration, and psychological changes, stroke, headache/precipitation of migraine, the metabolic syndrome, adult-onset diabetes, non-insulin-dependent diabetes, coronary artery diseases, polycystic ovarian syndrome, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cancers, and autoimmune disorders and site-specific neoplasms, both in children and in adults. Recent data show that obesityrelated non-communicable diseases are increasing in many developing countries with cross-sectional and secular trends of childhood obesity globally and more prevalent to developing countries (10,11).…”

Hubungan Frekuensi Konsumsi, Asupan Energi, Lemak, Gula, Dan Garam Dalam Fast Food Dengan Kejadian Obesitas Pada Siswa/I SMP X Yogyakarta

“…8 Jenis makanan ini selain mengandung kalori yang tinggi juga tinggi lemak rendah serat, vitamin dan mineral dibandingkan makanan alami. 9 Dari ke 3 pola asuh tersebut, tipe yang paling efektif adalah authoritative, sebab dapat membimbing anak menjadi mandiri dibawah pengawasan orang tua. Sehingga harapannya, siswa yang tinggal dengan orang tua makannya teratur dan asupan gizinya terjaga, sehingga dapat menurunkan obesitas.…”