Different foods can affect everyone in different ways, but here are just some of the things that frequently eating fast food might do to your body:
Leave you bloated
Eating meals that are high in sodium, high in fat or heavy with refined carbohydrates such as bread, pasta or pastries can all leave you feeling bloated. And, if you add a soda to your meal, the carbonation could make it worse. Bloating should only be temporary, but it could cramp your style if you’re wearing pants that are tighter in the waist or if you’re trying to get rings on or off your fingers.
Drive up your cholesterol
Food that’s fried in oil is high in fat and that includes saturated fat. Eating too much saturated fat can drive up your LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol, which puts you at risk for heart disease. The American Heart Association recommends that no more than 6% of your daily calories come from saturated fat. If you eat 2,000 calories a day, that’s about 13 grams, or the amount that’s in one bacon, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich.
Contribute to digestive problems
Bagels, muffins and anything breaded might be delicious, but they’re all processed carbohydrates that lack fiber. Eating adequate amounts of fiber (25 to 35 grams a day) helps keep things moving in your digestive tract. It lowers your risk for diverticulitis and other conditions associated with straining or constipation, such as hemorrhoids and hernias.
Dietary fiber also helps your good gut bacteria flourish and keeps you feeling full. If you rely heavily on fast food, you’ll struggle to get the recommended amount. For example, a coffee-shop blueberry muffin will give you nearly 20% of your daily carbohydrate needs but only a gram or two of fiber.
Lead to weight gain
If you go to the drive-thru and grab a value meal for dinner, you’ll end up eating a bigger portion and higher-calorie meal than you would if you were cooking at home. If that becomes a regular thing, all those extra calories can add up to extra pounds. And when those calories are mostly from highly process carbohydrates, you might end up feeling hungry again within a few hours, which can lead to even more extra calories. Then there’s the sugar factor. Sugar is a major culprit in the obesity epidemic. It hides in a lot of foods, including drinks and sauces.
Drain your energy
A quick hit of refined carbohydrates and sugar causes a spike in your blood sugar, which prompts your body to produce a surge of insulin to quickly bring it down. This spike-and-crash cycle can leave you feeling tired and cranky. Meanwhile, a balanced meal with protein, healthy fats and fiber-rich carbohydrates takes longer for your body to digest and absorb. This slows the release of sugar into your bloodstream, so you get sustained energy without a crash.
Affect your mood
When you eat a diet that’s high in saturated fat, sodium, sugar and refined carbs, you’re not only getting too much of those things, but you’re also missing out on a lot of other important nutrients. Fruits and vegetables beyond the iceberg lettuce and tomato slices that come on fast food sandwiches are rich with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that nourish your body and improve your mood.
Eating a lot of processed foods may even increase your risk for depression. The antibiotics and steroids used to farm cheap meat creates hormonal imbalances in men and women that consequently promotes depression.
Grocery shopping lists are a helpful way to reduce your chances of purchasing unhealthy foods that can cause you to gain weight and sabotage your goals.
Before your shopping trip, ensure that your list is organized into sections and includes all the items you will need to create healthy meals for the days to come. Below are some of our tips we encourage our clients to follow when planning their shopping. We provide detailed shopping plans with all our nutritional plans for your convenience.
Go With a Plan
Have a Snack First
Read Labels
Choose Seasonal Produce
Buy the Rainbow, different colored fruits and vegetables have different important nutrients
Stock up on Frozen Fruits and Vegetables.
Stocking your fridge with wholesome food is only half the battle. The other pertinent part of the equation is fridge organization
Where you place your foods — and whether they're easily accessible — is equally as important. Pair Healthy Foods Sometimes the only thing standing between you and a healthy snack is time. To simplify your life and streamline your snacking, store your favorite healthy treats - carrots and hummus, apples and peanut butter in the same drawer for convenience.
Fresh fruit skewers is the perfect example. Simply wash and chop your favorite fruit (or use pre-cut fruit) and make fruit kebabs: pair cubes of pineapple and clementine slices, bananas with halved strawberries or mango with blueberries. Then toss a few "sticks" in a Ziploc with nuts or seeds for a beautifully balanced snack that's ready to go and perfectly portable. Store Nutritious Foods on Center Shelves It is smart to keep items like fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, seafood and your favorite unsweetened beverages front and center. Stock water in a central spot too. Many people mistake hunger for thirst. So, before you reach for something to eat, hydrate first.
Store leafy greens, lettuce and anything pre-cut or sliced in crisper drawers.
Meat, seafood, poultry, dairy and eggs, plus veggie-heavy leftovers, should go in the middle of the fridge, toward the back. That's the coolest part, which will help them stay fresh the longest.
The door gets the most "action" from a temperature standpoint, so use it for condiments, iced coffee, wine and anything else that's safe at room temp.
Make a DIY Salad Bar One of the biggest barriers to getting in those good-for-you-foods is finding time for ingredient prep (because honestly, who wants to chop veggies after a long day?!), so having your ingredients ready to go will naturally eliminate the urge to say no time and order takeout. This is especially true when it comes to making salad. If all your ingredients are prepped, a hearty, leafy bowl of greens is just minutes away. So instead of tossing your fruits and veggies haphazardly into produce bins, set aside some time to wash, chop and store in clear containers on the second shelf of your fridge. You can also stock other healthy salad ingredients — like beans, chickpeas and edamame — in nearby containers so you can build your own salad bowl in a breeze. To cut back on prep time, buy fresh produce that's in-season and pre-cut. Stash Less-Healthy Foods Out of Sight Indulging in your favorite foods (even if they're not necessarily nutritious) is an important part of a healthy, balanced way of eating. But to help you from overdoing it, eat the serving you like, and then store the rest out of sight.
In other words, in a less-accessible area like the back of your fridge on the bottom shelf. This way you're not tempted for a taste every time you open the fridge. Storing irresistible treats in your freezer is another smart strategy.
