As a taxpayer, I have to pay subsidies to the beef and cattle industry (even though I'm a vegetarian) so that fast food 'restaurants' can offer 'bargain meals' to customers, so they can buy more, so they can get sick, so that as a taxpayer, I can subsidize the medical care necessitated by this cheap 'food.' Only in America.
84
There are more superstitions and mindless prejudice about what foods are healthy than any other subject except maybe life-after-death.
Just because food is served quickly, efficiently, and inexpensively does not make it unhealthy.
12
Republicans are wrong to see Medicare/Medicaid as a cause of busting our fiscal health. Instead, it looks like our dietary behavior, "Eat to death by fast food". According to CDC, more than 100 million U.S. adults are now living with diabetes or prediabetes, according to a report released on Jul 24, 2017. The report finds that as of 2015, 30.3 million Americans – 9.4% of the U.S. population –have diabetes. Most of these people would suffer not only from diabetes but also cardio-vascular diseases and dementia in older ages.
11
I watch what I eat closely, and I've read nutritional information at Starbucks, Subway, and other "healthier" fast food franchises. While they are better than double burgers, I'm often surprised to see the amounts of sugar, salt, and unhealthy fat they manage to put into their food. This includes salad dressings and sauces, for sure, but I've also seen additional sugar content in other items, even in the breads they serve.
As I get older I am certain of less and less every year, but for me this truth remains unshaken: the healthiest foods are unprocessed ones, cooked in someone's home.
52
Fast food is a convenient "addiction." It is there without any planning, but it is possible to recover. I was a Starbucks addict. I ate their second rate food, accepted their star dash challenges some of which overlapped so I was getting double bonuses and played every game. Last May I noticed I had 1100 stars which would expire on November 1 along with the many I had on other months. This coincided with the one day they allowed for my birthday award. How dumb to be so cheap about that when I wanted to spend the day at Disney where their Starbucks do not give free stuff. (Except at Disney Springs) From May to October I got only free stuff which I noticed I didn't particularly enjoy. Since then, I go in only if there is no other place to get coffee which is exceedingly rare. I don't eat their food. I don't seem to be going anywhere else. I plan ahead or do without. It works for me.
7
Not if you’re a vegan. Limited choices can be a good thing.
9
An order for lunch at a drive thru for a family of four can easily add up to $40. Not small change to the economically challenged. Reserved for them for special occasions only.
Whereas those with disposable incomes, it's not a big deal to drop 20 bucks for lunch. Those with less are prone to brown bagging it and cooking at home more often.
The wealthier people I know have a tendency to eat out two or even three times a day (Starbucks). One is they don't have the time to cook or two they don't know how. Their fridges are usually stacked with delivery meal or take away containers of leftovers and condiments.
While their elaborate, state of the art kitchens go unused.
23
Being of the over 60 group...I can’t even tell you the last time I ate fast food. Probably more than 20 years ago. I do occasionally enjoy a plain or veggie pizza, but not all that frequently. Even when I had my career I didn’t normally eat fast food. I guess it’s all about educating yourself about nutrition, and realizing that some day you’ll end. I prefer to live as long as possible, and as healthy as possible.
12
Makes sense from an economic and workforce perspective. Fast food is cheap and effortless compared to purchasing groceries, preparing meals, and packing lunch for work. Correspondingly, higher income families tend to fill schedules with kids activities, social events, entertainment and extra-curricular activities that encroach on family dinner times.
12
@James C I understand that busy working families don't necessarily have time to cook a meal. But why not just throw a Quest protein bar into your pocket or purse and eat that instead? They cost about $2 each, pack 20 grams of protein, about 15 grams of fiber, very little salt and sugar. And they come in a variety of flavors so you're almost sure to find one you like. I just don't get the fast food thing. It's garbage, and it ain't cheap! Just say no to fast food...there are better, cheaper alternatives that are actually QUICKER than fast food.
10
I am curious to see what is considered fast food in the research. I am in the category of high consumption of fast food and if 50% of the people are eating fast food on the daily bases i feel like i should at least know 1 of them. Honestly i don't know ANYONE who eats tradition fast food (McDonalds, KFC, Taco bell...) on the daily basis. Like many other commenters pointed out chipotle is probably very different from McDonald. I don't think eating chipotle is bad. Penera bread is also very healthy. There are many new "fast food" places such as salad or whole grain bowl which are very healthy but also fast and pre made. Also now days there are many high end Pizza are those consider fast food?
27
What distinguishes fast food from everything else we eat? What evidence do we have that it leads to bad health outcomes? Being quick, by itself, doesn't make it unhealthy.
Fast food is usually high in carbs and is most often accompanied by a large sugary drink. It tends to be high is fat, but so is a steak. It's low in fiber, but even our fruit is low in fiber these days (we've worked for generations to selectively breed fiber out and make fruit sweeter). It tends to lack micronutrients--vitamins, minerals, flavenoids, etc. Unless ketchup is a vegetable, it lacks vegetables.
If it's distinguishing characteristic is speed of service, then, if we can make cars that drive themselves, surely we can create appealing food that can be served quickly and is more healthy.
9
What is fast food? Is all pizza bad? This information is meaningless without differentiating between, say Chipotle or Boston Market and McDonald's or KFC. Is a bigger burger at Outback better for you? Chick-fil-A has decent salads. It matters more what you eat than where you get it.
36
I don’t think Chipotle, Panera, Chik-fil-a salads, Starbucks foods are much better than McDonald’s etc. The quality of the ingredients is not good — better off assembling your own egg bites, salads etc at home.
17
@John B, I enjoy the baked potatoes at Wendy's. It's the only thing I'll eat there. They're not bad for a little larger than a buck.
4
Interesting tidbits in this article. It's hard to draw conclusions without knowing what people are choosing to eat at these fast food restaurants (though based on obesity rates, it's probably not the salads). Also, is it worse than what they would consume at home or in a more traditional restaurant?
The challenge seems to be encouraging Americans to make healthier choices whenever and wherever they are eating. If the CDC had figured that out, I assume it would have been front-page news.
Lastly, I have to chuckle at the ad for a two-course meal at Eataly that accompanies this article.
5
Just came back from Stockholm where virtually no one is overweight and even the elderly are active. Hit the airport here and the differences were startling as we saw people of all ages struggling to move. If you eat high calorie food in the portion sizes we are often served, you are likely to put on weight unless you are extremely active. Put on too much weight and you begin to have mobility problems. I support the posting of calorie content. Sometimes the burger is a better choice than the salad loaded with dressing. Me, I prefer to cook at home spiralizing and baking my potatoes as a good alternative to French fries.
14
What is sad is that there are so many quality frozen entrees that are heat and eat. They are not the tasteless TV dinners of the past. Accompana package of a complete salad to a tasty frozen lasagne, chicken Kung pao,
3
"More than a third of adults in the United States patronize fast-food restaurants and pizza parlors on any given day. And the higher their income, the more likely they are to do so."
As usual, looks like we've been blaming the wrong demographic- the poor and black or brown skinned.
19
@JA Huh?
I read this as being income based, not race based. And it's the HIGHER income people who are consuming them, not the poorer.
6
Only more than a third??? I thought it would have been more....
4