Judul: Advantages and Disadvantages of Eating Fast Food Eating
Penulis: K. Vera Diaz
Advantages and Disadvantages of Eating Fast Food
Eating is one of the human's activities that it is enjoyable. There are many kinds of food available to eat, no exception is fast food. Fast food is a kind of meal which is prepared or served quickly. Some people argue that by eating fast food, they may get the advantages and disadvantages. These reasons will be illustrated here.
Advantages of Fast Food
The most evident advantage of fast food is that it saves time. In today's fast-paced life, there is nothing better than getting a ready meal. No matter how much the chefs praise the benefits of fresh food, at the end of a hard-working day, when one returns home all tired and hungry, a pizza or a burger can be godsend. Besides the time an individual has to spend in the kitchen, cooking a meal also requires one to make a trip to the supermarket to buy the ingredients for the dish. Then there is the added effort and time consumed in washing and peeling the vegetables. All this makes eating fast food score more preferably over cooking a meal for a busy individual.
Besides time, cost saving gives fast food an edge over the meal prepared in the kitchen. If one lives alone, then it is cheaper to buy a meal at the supermarket instead of cooking it at home. Also certain fast foods like fries and burgers come pretty cheap.
Fast food does raise health concerns. However, if careful, you can find some options on the menu of a fast food restaurant that could be healthier. Salads are a smart choice. Go for bread products that are made from wheat bread. Opt for lean meat. If you could choose between the fried and boiled options, order the boiled preparation. Avoid ordering carbonic drinks when you are thirsty. Go for fruit juices, low-fat milk and diet soda. Is there anything better than plain water to quench your thirst? These days, nutrition information of the food served (and ingredients used) is displayed in the menu card. You could always resort to the 'make to order' option that certain fast food outlets offer, where you could restrict the use of ingredients that are not healthy. As dessert does not play an important role in the fast food meal menu, you can keep yourself away from delicious and tempting sugary dishes.
Disadvantages of Fast Food
Usually, fast food is higher in soya, fat, sugar, oil, fried meat, salt, cheese, mayonnaise and obviously calories. The greatest disadvantage of fast food is the adverse effect that it has on one's health. It is a fact that fast food is more unhealthy than home-cooked meals, as it contains higher amounts of unwanted nutrients like salt, fat and various types of additives (artificial chemicals). It may contain harmful bacteria too. Frying destroys most of the essential nutrients from the food. Very small amounts of vegetables and fruits are normally present in fast food. Moreover, 'serving larger portions' when most people don't need extra portions has led to several health problems. We require a small amount of salt to maintain the health of the cells and tissues. Fast food being rich in salt, adversely affects the heart health and the overall health of an individual. Such type of food is an important contributor to obesity in the American population. Obesity is on the rise, and a direct link is being cited between fast food and obesity in children.
Given the sedentary lifestyle that we lead today, the excess fats and calories that we take in with fast food is not used up completely. The result is that these accumulate in our body as fat deposits that cause complications like cardiovascular diseases and other related diseases of the heart. With obesity come other problems like high blood pressure and diseases of the joints. It is like a chain reaction set off by fast food and carried forward by our unhealthy lifestyle. In fact, a recent study has shown that people who live within walking distance of a fast food restaurant are at 13% higher risk of suffering from strokes than those who live a considerable distance away.
The greater the number of people at a meal in a fast food restaurant, the larger is the bill. Eating at fast food outlets is economical only for a single person. Going out to a fast food eating joint with family once in a while won't matter much. However, frequent visits to such restaurants with one's family can become quite an expensive affair, besides being unhealthy.
Fast food joints are also being seen as a factor that is making a number of families spend less and less time together. Family meal time is something that is considered as an opportunity for all the members to come together and share their experiences. However, the fast food centers are quickly eating into this quality time. This is especially true about youngsters for whom a fast food center is a good place to hangout with friends and peers.
Fast food is an invention of the modern times. Ready-made food being served fast and right in front of us is like a blessing after a hard day's work. However, like everything, it has its own pros and cons. Citing a few points about the advantages of fast food does not mean that I am denying its drawbacks. It is a fact that high amounts of fats and salt in fast food are raising concerns about their adverse effect on health. However, by making some smart choices while placing the order and also resorting to an active lifestyle, we can definitely minimize the drawbacks of fast food.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Eating Healty Food
The benefits to eating a healthy diet are varied and many. If you seek to live a long life while keeping your waistline trim, eat healthy foods every day. Eat richly colored fruit, dark green vegetables, lean meats and whole grains to give your body optimum energy.
People who eat healthy foods tend to have lower blood pressure than their counterparts who eat overly processed foods. If you eat whole and fresh foods and keep your sodium intake to less than 1,500 mg per day, you have a better chance of maintaining healthy blood flow in your arteries.
A diet of healthy foods contains lean cuts of meat and poultry instead of large portions of fattier cuts of meat. The benefit of this is lower levels of bad cholesterol.
People who eat a balanced, varied, low-calorie diet have an easier time preventing weight gain and maintaining a healthy weight.
Healthy foods like fruits, vegetables and whole grains are filled with fiber. If you eat 25 to 35 grams of fiber a day, you will rarely suffer from constipation.
When you choose healthy foods that are low in fat, sodium and cholesterol and are nutrient dense with essential vitamins, you are doing your best to keep your body working efficiently. People who eat healthy and are not overweight have a lower risk of cancer, diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular disease.
The only disadvantage is that it takes quite the time to prepare, but does it really matters with all this advantages?
In resume
Healthy food advantages-
Can lower risks of diseases and cancers
Help you keep active providing energy
Aid in restful sleep
Keep you relaxed
Prevent you from becoming obese
Can make you live longer
Healthy disadvantages-
Usually more expensive
Harder to make meals out of
Quite boring and repetitive
Junk advantages.-
Cheaper to buy
Easier to make meals out of
Widely available
Satisfying
Suppress cravings
Junk disadvantages.-
Can cause obesity
Can cause heart problems
Can rot your teeth
Provide many calories with little nutritional value
Raise your blood pressure because of salt, and therefore make it more likely for you to have a heart attack.
The Nutrition Pyramid
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Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta
Grain products like bread, cereal, rice, and pasta are good for you. They are important sources of vitamins and minerals. Breads, cereals, rice, and pasta are also good sources of carbohydrates like starch and fiber.
Many people think that starchy foods like breads, rice and pasta are fattening. They are not. But when you add fats like margarine, oil, mayonnaise, cheese sauce or gravy to them, you add many extra calories.
Whole-grain foods have more fiber than white grain foods. There are many kinds of whole-grain foods, such as oatmeal, brown rice, grits, corn tortillas and whole wheat bread. You may want to try whole grain bread instead of white bread. Use brown rice instead of white rice or mix them together the next time you have rice.
Some breads and cereals have lots of fat and sugar added when they are manufactured. Croissants, Danish, doughnuts, cake and some muffins have more fat and calories than servings of plain breads and cereals. If you enjoy sweet breads and cereals, you don't have to give them up. Try eating these foods less often or in small amounts. When you shop, read the food labels and look for breads, cereals, rice and pasta mixes that have less fat and sugar in them. You can also cut down on fat when you make rice or pasta dishes. Try using less oil, butter, or margarine than the recipe says. Sometimes you can cut the fat in half without changing the way the food tastes or looks!
The Fruit Group
The fruit food group is healthy because of the following important reasons:
may reduce the incidence of stroke and other heart disease
may protect against certain cancers of digestive system
foods high in dietary fiber help reduce HDL ("bad") cholesterol levels
contain high amounts of potassium which assists in reducing high and water retention
provide natural sugars for energy sustenance
should be eaten raw to gain best health benefits
has many vital nutrients essential for good health:
beta-carotenedietary fiber
folic acidpotassiumvitamin CAll fruit foods are included in the fruit food group. There are a variety of different types of fruits, including:
berries - blueberry, raspberry, strawberry
citrus - grapefruit, lime, lemon, orange, tangerines
melons - honeydew, rockmelon (cantaloupe), watermelonstone - apricot, cherry, nectarine, peach, plum
tropical - banana, mango, papaya, pineappleothers - apple, avocado, dates, figs, grapes, pear
The Vegetables Group
Vegetables are eaten in a variety of ways, as part of main meals and as snacks. The nutritional content of vegetables varies considerably, though generally they contain little protein or fat and varying proportions of vitamins such as Vitamin A, Vitamin K and Vitamin B6, provitamins, dietary minerals and carbohydrates. Vegetables contain a great variety of other phytochemicals, some of which have been claimed to have antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral and ant carcinogenic properties. Some vegetables also contain fiber, important for gastrointestinal function. Vegetables contain important nutrients necessary for healthy hair and skin as well. People who refrain from dairy and meat products and eats only plants (including vegetables) are known as a vegan.
However, vegetables often also contain toxins and antinutrients such as α-solanine, α-chaconine, enzyme inhibitors (of cholinesterase, protease, amylase, etc.), cyanide and cyanide precursors, oxalic acid, and more. Depending on the concentration, such compounds may reduce the edibility, nutritional value, and health benefits of dietary vegetables. Cooking and/or other processing may be necessary to eliminate or reduce them.
Diets containing recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables may help lower the risk of heart diseases and type 2 diabetes. These diets may also protect against some cancers and decrease bone loss. The potassium provided by both fruits and vegetables may help prevent the formation of kidney stones.
The Meat Group
Meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts are important sources of protein, iron, zinc, and B vitamins. This group includes plant foods and animal foods.
Some meats and meat products are high in fat. There are many ways to reduce the fat you get from these meats. You can choose leaner cuts like chuck, bottom round or top round of beef, pork loin or lamb shank. You can trim fat from meat before cooking and eating. You can take the skin off chicken. Many processed meats like hot dogs, sausage, pepperoni, bacon, ham and luncheon meats are high in fat and sodium. If you enjoy eating these meats, try having them less often and when you do, try eating them in smaller amounts.
Because eggs are a good source of iron and protein, they are counted as a meat serving. Most of the fat in eggs is found in the yolk. When you use the egg whites, you can cut the fat and keep the protein and vitamins you need.
Plant foods like lentils, black-eyed peas, chick peas and other dried beans and peas are inexpensive sources of protein. Unlike meats, beans are low in fat and high in fiber. Nuts and nut butters like peanuts and peanut butter are good sources of protein and iron; but they are higher in fat than other plant foods.
You can get the nutrients you need from this group without a lot of fat and without costing a lot. Many lean meats like beef chuck are also lower in cost. If you buy ground beef that is 70% fat because it is less expensive, you can still reduce the fat. Try draining the meat after you cook it or add other ingredients. Mix small amounts of meat with pasta, beans and rice to stretch your food dollar. You will get the same nutrients but it will cost you less.
The Diary Group
Also called milk products and sometimes categorized with milk alternatives or meat, is typically a smaller category in nutrition guides. Examples of dairy products include milk, butter, yogurt and cheese, is typically a very small category in nutrition guides, if present at all, and is sometimes listed apart from other food groups. The categorization of dairy as a food group with recommended daily servings has been criticized by, for example, the Harvard School of Public Health. The HSPH points out that "research has shown little benefit, and considerable potential for harm, of such high dairy intakes. Moderate consumption of milk or other dairy products—one to two servings a day is fine, and likely has some benefits for children. But it's not essential for adults, for a host of reasons."
The Oils Group
Foods in this group include butter, margarine, salad dressing, mayonnaise, sour cream, oils, lard, and nuts. The foods in this group are grouped together because they contain similar amounts of calories and fat per serving and, with the exception of nuts, contain little protein or carbohydrates. Although fat is often thought of as being unhealthy for you, fat is essential for life. We need a certain amount of fat each day. The hard part is deciding what types and how much fat to eat.
There are four main types of fat, polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, trans, and saturated fats. All of these names describe the chemical structure of the different fats. Most foods contain a mixture of these four types of fats, but they are grouped by the type of fat that is present in the largest amount. While it is true that all fat is high in calories and that too much of any type of fat may be unhealthy, some types of fat are better for you than others. Saturated and trans fats have been shown to increase the risk for heart disease, but polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats have been shown to have no effect on or decrease the risk for heart disease.
Alcohol and Sweets
Alcohol is listed apart from other food groups and recommended only for certain people in moderation by Harvard's Healthy Eating Pyramid and the University of Michigan's Healing Foods Pyramid, while Italy's food pyramid includes a half-serving of wine and beer.
Water is treated in very different ways by different food guides. Some exclude the category, others list it separately from other food groups, and yet others make it the center or foundation of the guide. Water is sometimes categorized with tea, fruit juice, vegetable juice and even soup, and is typically recommended in plentiful amounts.
Sugars, which are simple carbohydrates, are easy to digest and are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream where they provide quick energy. Sugars provide some nutritive value, but they should be eaten sparingly because they are often consumed as excess calories and lead to weight gain.
Easy to Follow Guide!
Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta (6-11 servings daily)
The Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta group is at the base of the pyramid because these foods should provide the majority of the energy a person needs each day. These foods are high in complex carbohydrates, which are the body's favorite fuel. After carbohydrates are digested, energy in the form of glucose is circulated in the blood. The liver and muscles also store glucose for later use during physical activity. This food group also provides other important nutrients such as vitamin B-complex (folate), which helps your body form DNA/RNA and red blood cells and aids the body in using proteins. Whole grains add necessary bulk to the digestive tract to aid in elimination of wastes.
1 serving =
1 slice of bread
1/2 cup cooked rice or pasta
1 ounce cold cereal
1/2 bagel
1/2 English muffin
Vegetables (3-5 servings daily)
Vegetables provide many of the vitamins and minerals needed for good health. Because vegetables contain many different vitamins and minerals, it is important to have a variety of them in your diet. Vegetables also provide fiber to aid in elimination of body wastes. Be sure to scrub vegetables before cooking. Ideally, vegetables should be steamed, microwaved, or eaten raw. Occasional stir-frying is acceptable. Boiling vegetables is OK, but some of the vitamins and minerals will be lost to the cooking water.
1 serving =
1/2 cup chopped vegetables (raw or cooked)
1 cup raw leafy vegetables
b>Fruit (2-4 servings daily)
Fruits are especially good sources of important vitamins like A and C. This food group also adds minerals such as potassium and fiber for proper elimination of wastes from the body. Be sure to scrub fruits before eating. It is best to eat fruits raw. Avoid peeling or slicing fruits until just before use.
1 serving =
1 medium-sized piece of fruit
1/2 cup cooked or canned fruit
1/2 cup fruit juice
Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese (2-3 servings daily)
This food group is an important source of vitamin A, vitamin D, calcium, and protein. Vitamin A is important for healthy eyes, skin, and hair. Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium and use it for healthy bones and teeth, along with muscle and nerve functions. Protein in the body is made from the building blocks called amino acids. Protein's main functions are to repair and maintain body tissues, produce hemoglobin to carry oxygen to the cells, and produce antibodies and enzymes. Some of the amino acids in protein are produced by the body; others must be obtained in the diet. Excess protein is converted to fat in the body and stored.
1 serving =
1 cup milk
1 cup yogurt
1 1/2 to 2 ounces cheese
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Beans, Eggs, and Nuts (2-3 servings daily)
Protein, an important part of your diet, can be found in this food group. Foods in this group also provide vitamin B-complex, which helps your body form DNA/RNA and red blood cells and aids the body in using proteins. And iron helps build strong bones and teeth and support muscle and nerve functions.
1 serving =
2 to 3 ounces lean meat, poultry, or fish
1 egg, 2 Tbs. peanut butter, or 1/2 cup cooked dried beans counts as 1 ounce of lean meat
Fats, Oils, and Sweets
Fats and oils are essential nutrients to maintain body function but should be used sparingly. Fats help the body absorb vitamins A, D, E, K, and beta-carotene. They help slow sugar's release into the bloodstream and are important for the formation of cell membranes.
Aim for fat intake of 30% or less of total daily food intake. Saturated fats (butter, beef fat) should be limited to 10% or less of the fat total. Unsaturated fats (safflower and corn oil) and monounsaturated fats (olive and peanut oil) are healthier choices. That means that if you needs 2,000 calories a day, you can safely have about 60 grams of fat each day in combination with a varied diet.
Sugars, which are simple carbohydrates, are easy to digest and are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream where they provide quick energy. Sugars provide some nutritive value, but they should be eaten sparingly because they are often consumed as excess calories and lead to weight gain.
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