5 Fast Food Crimes
I thought all meals were the same, but I found out the hard way they aren't.
Out shopping with little ones can be exhausting especially when everyone is tired and hungry. Being on the go you just want to fill their tummies and forego the tantrums from erupting. Thinking food is food we got a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken, excited to revisit an old favorite, with side orders for everyone.
Awesome everyone is feeling happy and full.
Wrong. Would you believe that in a half hour later we were all feeling the hunger pangs again! I was deflated, baffled and hungry that such a delicious and favorite childhood memory could not satisfy our hunger.
I remember as a child, every Sunday lunches after church, family occasions, we had a bucket of chicken with Cole slaw and all the side order trimmings. I remember still sitting in our Sunday best eating our meal around the table. Kentucky Fried Chicken's 11 spices was delicious and my brother and I always fought over who would get the keel (breast meat) . All the meat was pretty good quality and the side orders were a pretty close tie to our home-cooked meals.
Crime Scene:
What's happening to me inside when I eat fast food?
In Dr. Travis Stock MD's video on "Fast Foods Effect On The Body"
A very interesting experiment that lasted for five days. I was amazed that when eating a fast food meal, in only five days, our body could react in many negative ways.
1. Weight Gain: Since fast food does not contain much fiber and only empty calories, we do not feel full afterwards. Therefore we want to eat more later so we feel that fullness, causing us to over eat and gain weight. “A high calorie intake can lead to obesity, which puts you at risk for developing chronic diseases,” warns Jim White, RD, ACSM, owner of Jim White Fitness & Nutrition Studios.
2. High Cholesterol: "Deep fried foods served with cheese and high-fat dipping sauces. This kind of high fat content in fast food can contribute to high cholesterol." says Jim White. With an excess amount of fat in the body, the fat attaches to the wall of your arteries making a narrow passage for your blood to pass though, causing the heart to pump harder and the arteries are under more strain to carry the blood around your body.
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2011 performed an experiment with healthy people who ate junk food for only 5 days. They performed poorly on thinking tests that measured attention, speed, and mood. The conclusion was that eating junk food for just five days regularly can deteriorate your memory. One of the reasons would be that poor diet can cause certain chemical reactions that lead to inflammation in the hippocampus area of the brain which is associated with memory and special recognition. The brain contains synapses which are responsible for learning and memory. Eating too many calories can interfere with the healthy production and functioning of these synapses.
4. The More Fast Food You Eat, The Greater Risk Of Depression: Study by scientists from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the University of Granada, concludes the connection with eating fast food increases the risk of developing depression. The study indicated that people who ate fast food were 51 percent more likely to develop depression than those who didn’t.
A new reason to avoid fast food. Seth Santoro of LA Life Chef says, "Polyfluoroalkyl phospate esters (PAPs) are chemicals that coat fast-food packaging to make it repel oil, grease and water. The substances that leaches to the food inside the packaging is then ingested by people and ends up in your bloodstream. They’re linked to liver disease as well as cancer”.
I know it's yummy and fast, but I don't know about you, I really hate getting sick or having a fuzzy brain. If I knew of just one thing that could keep me from getting sick I would try it. Why do we feed ourselves these foods that inhibits optimal brain function and causes havoc on our bodies? What are your thoughts, I would love to hear them?
My husband and I have learned our lesson and we always carry water and snack foods for the whole family. Let me know how you have solved this dilemma and what are your "Go to snacks" for your family on the go?
