Fast Foods = Bad Habits

So I started to work on this week’s post on a hot summer evening here in the DMV (Its Afrika Hot this week!) contemplating what I was going to eat for dinner. And let me just say, I was dying for a burger, fries and milkshake like my man “Tyrone Biggums” from the Chapelle Show. Naturally, the next thing that came to mind was how much and how bad we all have become slaves to fast foods worldwide. Fast foods do not only conjure up images of popular franchises like McDonald’s or Kentucky Fried Chicken but fast food is also anything that you pay for that arrives through the window of your car. So for this week’s HEALTH topic on the blogspot, I want to share with you some of the risk associated with our poor eating habits.

BTW; I just killed a juicy a** cheeseburger and chips for dinner.  Looool.

Ok people; let me get focused…

In doing some reading about our addiction to fast food, I came across a very good article that helped to simplify things a bit. Just stop for a minute and think about how many times you have eating in your car, office desk, in front of the television, delivery or heated up a frozen meal. Was it the taste? Was it because it was fast and cheap? Ahhhhh, the CONVENIENCE… This is a global trend, be it Africa, Europe or here in the United States. Fact is more people, first and third world countries included spend a lot of money purchasing prepared meals and eating out at restaurants. If there truly is a Global Recession going around then the fast food industry never got the memo or was simply EXEMPT from the discussion.

If anybody tries to make the case or tell you that it saves time and cost less to eat sensible then he/she is LIAR.  Why is it that the foods that are deemed healthy for you are the most overpriced items at the supermarket? Don’t forget the fact that your local health food store is across town in the middle of nowhere by Timbuktu, so now you going to fight traffic and gas prices just to get what is considered a “Healthy Gourmet”. Ever noticed how the coupon advertised by your local grocery store is never for the desired healthy food items on the shelf but more for things like soda, chips and dip. And the whole eating organic foods bulls**t was nothing more than just a big ploy cleverly constructed to generate revenue and boost the economy as far as am concerned. Organic foods are not healthier or better for the environment as originally claimed. Look it up…

Even back home in Nigeria I saw clearly the vast difference in the quality of food we ate when prepared at home versus outside. There is always a “Miss” So/So or “Aunty” that has started a fledgling restaurant business either straight out of her home or is a moving kitchen parading the neighborhood soliciting young boys/girls to try out her homemade dishes. I can’t even front, that food always taste better primarily because of all the extra oil, salt and food additives. And as we Africans continued to drink the Kool-Aid over the years on everything western or European, our health and eating habits have deteriorated.   

Anonymous; “people who are fat don’t want to blame themselves for pigging out, instead of eating normal, at home etc. So they go eat out, and blame McDonald’s for having fatty foods, and being overweight”.

I used to think just like anonymous until I started educating and holding myself accountable for my poor decision making when it comes to what I eat.  Now there is some truth in the statement because neglecting to pay attention to what you put inside your body will significantly increase your chances of obesity, heart disease, hypertension and more.

The key is striking a BALANCE. There are NO short cuts or quick fixes to sustaining a long and healthy lifestyle. Our food intake only represents a small segment of what we have the ability to influence and control in order to reach our desired outcome. I will never take the position that all fast foods are bad for you but if we do not limit or manage how often we eat out and improve on our portion control then there is NO  place for indulgence in our diets.  I reckon more with the logic of “It’s not the fast food… It’s the eaters of the fast food”. So once you start on that track, you better have the resolve and mental toughness needed to combat such self destructive behavior.

You are what you eat.