Every week, there is at least one article on the disadvantages of fast food, in every newspaper. Well, fast food can be highly disadvantageous, but not always. Fast food is often referred to junk food, and it is always advised to stay away from it. But I would say that if it is eaten in control, and is chosen wisely, there is a much brighter side to fast food. Fast food is not always bad for you, or for anyone else.
The most evident advantage of fast food is that it saves time. In today’s fast-paced life, there is nothing better than receiving a ready-made meal. No matter how much the people laud the benefits of fresh food, at the end of a hard-working day, when one returns home tired and hungry, a pizza or a burger can be godsend. Fast food bypasses all the trouble in shopping for groceries, washing and peeling them, and then cooking them. This is a big advantage especially or busy people. One would obviously choose the easier, and tastier – fast food.
Another strong benefit is that fast food is comparatively, very cheap. At what cost you could order a starter in a restaurant, you can possible fill you entire stomach on fast food. Even the cost of cooking the food yourself would be higher. That gives it an edge over food cooked in the kitchen, or a proper meal at a restaurant. On a tight budget, one may prefer to fill his stomach on fast food, over any other option. A study made by the students of The University of Canada revealed that on an average, fast food are fifty percent cheaper, and one can save up to eighty percent on expenses for eating the same amount of food. It shows that at the cost you could have eaten for two weeks, you can now eat for a month.
The biggest reason why people opt out of fast food is that they see it as unhealthy food. However, if careful, you can find some options on the menu of a fast food restaurant that could be healthier. Wheat breads can be healthy. Salads are another healthy option. Boiled food can be healthier than fried, while drinking fruit juice, or diet soda, over cold drinks can improve your health instead of negatively affecting it. You can plan your meal with the help of the nutrition data and ingredients mentioned in packages fast food.
Fast foods, even though considered unhealthy, have high amount of customers. Restaurants serving fast food usually have high turnovers, and food is bought as soon as it is cooked. This makes sure that the food you get is always fresh. On the other hand other restaurants that sell full meals may have very less customers and thus the food may be precooked and preserved, and warmed before served. This is a very important point, and is often not looked upon. Preserved food can be very unhealthy, and sometimes even worse than fast foods. The fact that fast foods are usually fresh, adds to the list of numerous fast foods benefits.
Fast foods are always advised as the last choice by health experts, but they can do better than full meals. When you get your food quicker, and it tastier, and fresher, and not to forget cheaper, why to go for something else? One should not blindly obey health experts, but also think logically, and choose the better option. Of course it does not mean that I encourage you to eat fast food all the time, but what I mean to say is that running from fast food at all time is illogical. You should choose you food according to the situation, and fast food can be the wiser option, particularly, after a day full of hard work.
Jay Dhameliya 