Hello mi amigos (my friends). I have not forgotten about you! I wanted to talk today about fast food. We live in a fast food nation! Everywhere you turn there is a restaurant offering you burgers, fries, deep fried golden delights! Since the rise in obesity, type II diabetes, and other food related illnesses, many places have added healthier options. BUT, you have to be careful. Yes careful. It’s required now that places provide their nutritional information to you. If you look at only the calories, you can still eat food not healthy for you.

Examples:

Taco bell has a new Cantina menu which is supposed to be healthier for you.

If you look at the calorie information, the burritos still have over 500 calories and loads of sodium (1100 mg and up)! Which is half of your daily allowance (what we should have). You are better off with one of their fresco menu items.

I told you a few posts back about my coworker who drinks his calories. The frappacino he drinks has 660 calories and almost 40 grams of sugar. We can get into trouble with fast food places if we think because an item is on a healthier menu it’s healthy. Too much sodium will not only cause you to retain water, but can lead to many other health problems. I read an article about how excess sodium helps your body produce the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol tells your body to store fat on your abdomen. Here’s how much sodium we should be having every day.

Sodium Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA)

The current recommendation is to consume less than 2,400 milligrams (mg) of sodium a day. This is about 1 teaspoon of table salt per day. It includes ALL salt and sodium consumed, including sodium used in cooking and at the table.

We are consuming far more sodium, fat, and unhealthy carbs than we should when we opt for fast food. Even the healthier items are loaded with sodium. I track my calories, fat, sodium, fiber, and sugar intake. Fat, sugar, and salt are the best friends of fast food.

My recommendations:

Limit fast food to only a few meals a week (if that) and eat at home or what you make as much as possible. The Sugar Detox I completed last year eliminated fast food. I lost fat, and felt 100 times better. We were not made to consume so much salt, sugar, preservatives, and fat. Oh and visit the nutrition site. You’ll be surprised what you find. There are some good options, it’s good to know which ones are not.

Fast food nutrition sites:

Panera: http://www.panerabread.com/menu/

McDonalds: http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html

Wendys: http://www.wendys.com/en-us/nutrition-info/

Taco Bell: http://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/

Chipotle: http://www.chipotlefan.com/index.php?id=nutrition_calculator

Starbucks: http://www.starbucks.com/menu/nutrition

Kentucky Fried Chicken: http://www.kfc.com/nutrition/

Subway: http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&p=subway+nutrition+facts (Has the healthiest options)

Be careful with salads at restaurants as well. Some options once you add dressing are worse than fries (the fat content and calorie content).

Keep up the good work with your fitness and wellness journey! Cheering for you.