We don’t have time to cook good foods, let alone going to church or our respective places of worship. Our jet set lifestyle is alone to be blamed. In this situation, we are slowly but surely inclining to such foods those are easy to cook and take less time to prepare. Even they are available in ready to eat state. Yes, I am talking about fast foods. Most of the ingredients of fast foods contain high calorie value. They also contain much amount of saturated oil, which are unhealthy. But, is there any healthy fast food? Does this concept really exist? Let us find it out.

Well, they do exist. Gourmet companies and fast food joints have bent to the increasing pressure of health conscious people. They have started preparing fast foods that are prepared from healthy ingredients. They are using oils and meats which contain less amount of trans fat. 

Whenever you are going to a fast food court, look for the salad dressings containing less oil or grilled chicken sandwiches. Order a sandwich but ask them to cut the mayonnaise or the extra cheese. You will find detailed nutritional information of all the ingredients used in a preparation over the counter or printed on the packaging. You can choose between healthy and ‘not so healthy’ foods. And if you are thirsty, choose a diet cola or water. It is another good habit to choose the smallest burger size.

Eat your fast food on the go. Drive-in restaurants are preferred. Studies have shown that people who sit and order their preferences in a fast food joint, land up into eating more. Watch the size of the portion of each food. Normally the portion size of any preparation in a fast food joint is 2-3 times more than they are in a restaurant. If the portion size is larger, ask them to pack the food and take it away. You can eat half of the item and keep the other half for next day’s use. What’s more, you can have your food without all the condiments and while at home, you can add healthier food options. Salads are notorious in terms of calories. You will have a family size salad dressing but your appetite will remain almost same. And if the salads contain oils and meat, you are in a soup. Try to order foods which do not require salads as its taste enhancers.

Many companies are marketing sandwiches and burgers with chicken free nuggets, which are nothing but chicken flavored tofu. Soybean nuggets are another healthy alternative. There are some joints which exclusively prepare these ‘healthy fast foods’. Some Asian fast food preparations like egg roll and veg spring roll are highly nutritious and contain less calorie and saturated oil.

Taking some light snacks before going out will kill your appetite. It is an old trick but it works. As you will have less appetite, you will tend to avoid fast food.

Healthy fast food is not a joke. With some modification in your taste and mindset, you can always enjoy the comfort of a fast food minus the extra calories.

Adobe Flash Player not installed or older than 9.0.115!

As we are advancing and going to a jet paced society, we get little time to cook delicious foods at our places. That’s why, we are slowly but surely inclining to fast foods, which are easy to cook and take very little time to prepare. Fast foods are also called ‘convenient foods’. Fast foods are inexpensive too in comparison to the conventional foods. Therefore, it is gaining popularity day by day. You can get fast foods through easily accessible places – foods and snack stalls, food vending machines, drive-in restaurants and in all departmental stores in easy to prepare packaging. Since its initiation, the concept of having fast food was not using any kind of cutlery. They are sometimes called ‘finger foods’ also.

The concept of fast food was present since the ancient times. Chinese were taking noodles as convenient foods, Middle -East Asian countries had their own falafel and flatbread, Indians were having panipuris and parathas, European countries had pies and cakes. All these suggest that people were always had an inclination towards the foods that are easy to prepare and takes less cooking time.

Today’s fast food includes – fish and chips, burgers, noodles, sausages, pizzas and pastries. They are cheaper as they are made from meat containing high fat level, refined white flours and sugars. They are prepared with oils containing high level of saturated fatty acids (which gives the richer taste to otherwise low taste foods).

Fast foods are generally unhealthy to us. They are made from high fat meat and oils. There are responsible for increasing cholesterol level in our blood. This can cause heart attack, deep vein thrombosis and cerebral stroke. Cholesterol can deposit inside the blood vessel and narrows their lumen. This in turn gives rise to high blood pressure. Deposition of fats in our body can make us obese, which is a predisposing factor for many diseases like diabetes, anxiety, depression, hormonal problem and arthritis. In a recent survey, it was seen that more than 190 million US citizens are either overweight or frankly obese. Researchers have identified increase use of fast food is one of the primary causes of these rapid progress.

As there is little effort takes to make fast foods, people are excessively dependent upon these foods. In January 2003, BBC published news based on surveys of the US scientists that fast foods are becoming as addictive as heroin. This over eating is purely due to lack of willpower. The problem has so vivid that the Los Angeles City Council had to pass an ordinance in barring construction of new fast food joints in a 83 square kilometer are in a specific locality populated by 500,000 people from low socio economic condition. Eating fast food is not necessarily causing harm to us. But the real problem lies elsewhere. You cannot control yourself going on eating. And at the end, you land up into gaining weight. Think it in this way; fuel is important for your engine. But in any case if excess fuel gets entry your car’s engine, it will sure to work less.

Having fast food is good, but always within a limit.

Adobe Flash Player not installed or older than 9.0.115!