Fast food! Who doesn’t want a solution that is quick, easy and delicious, and eliminates the need to cook at home? The term fast food was originally coined with the aim to have cheap, readily available food for persons in highly populated urban areas who really didn’t have the time to prepare their own meals or preferred not to. Fast food was merely an option of convenience where food was produced at a high speed for a low cost.
Recently, however, fast food has evolved to ‘junk food’ and is oftentimes synonymous with an unhealthy meal. Any consumption of fast food is believed to influence an unhealthy lifestyle. In other words, fast food is believed to be greasy, unhealthy obesity all wrapped up in a bag to go. But is that really so? Can fast food actually be healthy?
With the changing world, people are rapidly becoming more technologically advanced. The world as we know it has become virtual and everything can be done with the click of a button or the swipe of a screen; we have become more sedentary and as such chronic non-communicable diseases (CNCD’s) such as diabetes and hypertension as a result of obesity are rapidly on the rise.
Considering the direction in which the world is moving, it is no wonder the fast food industry has decided to take a 360 degree turn as the consumption of food has become more of a threat than an enjoyment and some consumers are enlightened and taking charge of their health. So, it really comes as no surprise that many fast food chains are pushing a ‘healthy food’ campaign for their establishment as more and more persons are requiring ready to eat food and want to have at least (or a few) healthy options. Let’s explore the possibility of making healthy choices from a typical menu.
At a popular fried chicken franchise, the menu consists of chicken in three forms: spicy, barbequed and original. Although fried, the healthiest of these options is the original as, the barbequed sauce carries some additional calories and the spicy has an extra flaky crust which implies the use of additional ingredients for the batter (adding more calories). Of course, removing the skin altogether from any option reduces the calorie count; the breast and the wing are the healthier parts to choose. Fries, just potato, right? On the contrary, potato deep fried in fat (oil). You can always consider having a side of mashed potatoes instead (without the gravy of course). If you think a side of coleslaw means you’re making a healthy choice by adding vegetables to the meal, you are better off without this mixture heavily laden with mayonnaise. There is now a salad option available, which again is better had with no salad dressing.
To continue reading, purchase Vol.9 #1, 2017 Issue.