A Few Of The Disadvantages Of Fast Food
We didn't used to give much thought to the disadvantages of fast food. Up until the end of World War II, we ate mostly home cooked meals, or the equivalent of home cooked meals in restaurants. On could of course eat a hamburger and fries, but both tended to be cooked upon ordering, and not mass-produced, prepackaged, and ready to serve on demand.
The coming of age of television led to the fast food many of us remember, and some still eat, the TV-dinner. We really didn't think of the TV-dinner as fast food, it was a convenience as far as preparation was concerned, and of course, along with the TV-dinner came the TV tray.
There were a few hamburger stand sprouting up, but not really much in the way of an established chain of them, certainly not on a nation-wide basis. Then came McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and soon a host of others, and the term fast food establishment entered our lexicon.
Maybe We Are To Blame - One of the disadvantages of fast food, does not have to do with the quality of the food itself, but rather is the reason why we have fast foods or convenience foods in the first place. We're busy, and we're rushed. Preparing a wholesome home-cooked meal has for many, gone the way of the dinosaurs. We just don't have time! When you just don't have time, quality sometimes begins to take a back seat. Eating on the run becomes the norm for many, and it's not healthy. If we're going to be stressed and rushed, we should at least have a wholesome diet to support that life style. A diet of fast food doesn't usually make the grade.
Spicing Up Plain Food - Then there's the fast food itself. If something like a hamburger is mass produced, and done it in a hurry, you risk it becoming bland and uninteresting, at least compared to a hamburger prepared in a nice restaurant. What to do? Add sugar, salt, trans-fats, or anything else that, while not adding to the food's nutritional value, makes it taste better. There's also the profit motive. Nothing wrong with making a profit, but when one makes $1 hamburgers (they used to be 25 cents), it's easy to cut back on the quality, not just the amount, of the ingredients in order to make a few cents profit on each burger served. The result is often a food product that does not contain the most nutritious ingredients.
Even a great restaurant can serve unhealthy or contaminated food. It's not likely, but bad food is much more apt to be served when it is prepared in a hurry, and by employees who are new to the task and who do not necessarily have a stake in the business. Aside from any problems with the food however, the greatest disadvantages of fast food may well be tied to the culture surrounding it. We are stressed, we are in a hurry, and we simply don't think about the nutritional aspects of what we are putting in our mouths. When food is prepared quickly, we have a tendency to eat it quickly, which isn't necessarily good for our insides. That doesn't mean you can't go to a Wendy's, IHOP or KFC, and order something nutritious and healthy, eat it slowly, and enjoy every bite, That's still possible, and many people do it.
Fast Food A Treat? - Maybe it would help in overcoming some of the disadvantages of fast food by just taking a moment to consider what you're about to order, and why, and give some thought to ordering something a little bit healthier. Then sit down and enjoy it. A trip to McDonald's or KFC, if done only on occasion, and not every day, isn't going to hurt you. Fast food, when not a standard part of your diet, can even be considered a treat.