Fast food - bad or not for the health?

[Suzanne]

I am asking, because when ever I have "fast food", I do not suffer bloating etc. But, when I have homecooked food, even if a slice of toast, I can get bloated etc.

Just sunday, gone, I had a kebab and was able to eat the entire meal, without feeling bloated at all. Don't even suffer acid reflux.

 

[kriss72]

I think it depends on what you mean by "fast food", in general I don't think it matters if the food is "fast", it is more what it is made of, also what the current interpretation of what healthy food is...

 

[chincey_james]

As with anything, it's the dose that makes the poison. I try to practice moderation with foods that are very high in sodium and sugar.

 

[elgat0verde]

If you eat it in a healthy way, as mentioned before, is not that bad for you

Fast food I THINK it's meant to be easily digested whereas fresh food takes a bit longer to digest, especially veggies and greens

Maybe that is why you don't feel bloated with it?

 

[Forest Cat]

We had a fun experiment here years ago, it was called "Decay". A guy lived in a storefront window for a week. Spent the entire week in a bed there, 24/7, while people walked by and looked at him. And he only ate fast food and candy and drank coca cola and cream. After just one week he had gained a surprising amount of weight and he was just a mess. A disgusting mess. Doctors gave him a check up and said he was in terrible shape. Everything was wrong with him. So based on that experiment fast food is terrible. Especially if you do nothing while eating it.

 

[elgat0verde]

Not to start a fight here, but it's all about moderation

Of course if you ONLY eat fast food you will get sick and gain weight but if you moderate your intake it won't really hurt you

The problem is that fast food is HIGHLY addictive and it's made to be that way but a burger with fries once a week won't kill you

There is yet another experiment where a nutrition professor ate only twinkies and he even lost 27 lbs

So moderation is actually the key, not avoiding it

 

[Ken]

This is a subject that I have to steer clear of, because it is such a hotly opinionated subject. But I will only say that bloating or acid reflux is not a good measure of good health. It's far more complicated than that. The vast majority of damage done by diet is not perceivable in the moment. Most of the damage is only noticed years later as parts begin to fail.

An example of what I'm talking about is the wide spread opinion that diabetes is caused by sugar. The reality is that the consumption of sugar elevating blood-sugar is a symptom, not a cause of diabetes. I will not mention the real cause (even thought it is very simple) as it always flashes an opinion explosion.

Basically, you can't really classify foods by how fast it is. Nor can you determine if it is healthy by how you feel after eating it. There are many autoimmune diseases that are triggered by very healthy food items. I have several of those diseases. There are several very healthy foods that are triggers, thus off my diet. That doesn't mean I can't eat a healthy diet, nor does it mean that my trigger foods are unhealthy for anyone else. There are a lot of healthy food options available.

On thing to remember about fast food is that it is a big business. A lot of research goes into designing the food for maximum (even addictive) pleasure - not health. Since health failure is so latent it never affects their sales.

I hope I haven't already said too much.

 

[Judge]

Just sunday, gone, I had a kebab and was able to eat the entire meal, without feeling bloated at all. Don't even suffer acid reflux.

Having dealt with reflux since 1993, my observation is that fast food is anything but fresh and natural compared to what most restaurants may serve. That "processed" foods so often found in fast food joints are likely to be far more deficient in nutrients, yet more bland at the same time. With less fat content that restaurants are notorious for with flavor enhancement. So I could see how a kebab served in a fast food outlet may not have the same fat content as a conventional restaurant would likely serve.

It's animal fat, oil and grease that most likely triggers my reflux.

Still, it's weird how many fast food joints (tacos/hamburgers) don't give me reflux. And how I have to be so careful in eating in most any restaurant. It's unnerving at times. I can pretty much enjoy fast food, but eating in a restaurant can put me into a cold sweat, wondering whether or not my 40mg of Famotidine will help me to avoid reflux in whole or in part. In the holiday season I usually just go through a 14-day regimen of taking Nexium/Omeprazole that hopefully lasts through Thanksgiving to Christmas. But I still cannot eat restaurant turkey dinners with gravy. Yet half the time I can eat them as a frozen dinner, presumably as more processed and bland food compared to a restaurant.

For most anything with chicken or turkey, it has to be heavily processed and without fat or oil to eat. Yet while eating bacon is a no-no, turkey bacon is just fine. KFC? No-no-no. The one fast food I don't even try. Go figure.

In essence, I like fast food for a basic reason. I like to eat without having to vomit. Something not so easily accomplished sitting down in any restaurant. Though in my own case, I really don't frequent even fast food joints all that often. High prices are almost as painful as GERD. - Almost....

 

[Dagan]

When most say fast food in my neck of the woods, it mostly means heavily processed foods and/or fried foods. I can better stomach the exact opposite of fast food, in this case. "My" health is absolutely better. My daughter's health is way better. Several auto-immune diseases are clinically controlled by diet. There's much evidence that eating healthier is better for your body. Still, as was already said, fast food is fine in moderation. I would call it a cheat meal, and I wouldn't do it more than twice a week. Changing my diet so much, though, it makes my body decide how often I can even handle a cheat meal, so it's not even once a week, now. My stomach prefers better food instead of the fast food. Subway or a place doing homestyle foods are easier on me, per a fast served meal, if anything.

It's truly what your body is used to / adjusted to. You can seriously go through ill symptoms resetting your diet. When I stopped drinking sodas, especially the "diet" sodas, my body ached. Every major joint hurt a little for about two weeks. That freaked me out. I don't miss dealing with that at all, anymore. There's going to be trade offs and such.