Browse: Home / Obesity / Have the hamburger and fries but don’t do the cold drink

Menu

Skip to content
  • About
  • Better Body Chemistry School
  • Book a health conversation
  • Speaking query
  • The “Big” Spoons
  • Donate
Header image

BBC

Small things can make a big difference to your health

advertisement

Menu

Skip to content
  • Home
  • START HERE
  • Free Resources
    • 31 days to Better Body Chemistry
    • Willpower Report
    • Better Body Chemistry for Expecting Moms
    • The ups and downs of insulin resistance
    • Candy Floss Boards
  • Meet the Team
  • Library
  • Lucky dip
  • Better Body Chemistry TV
    • Video gallery for Expecting Moms
    • Video gallery for people with metabolic syndrome
    • Video gallery of how to survive flu season
  • Sound bites
  • Contact

Have the hamburger and fries but don’t do the cold drink

Posted by Dr Sandy on in Obesity | 756 Views | Leave a response

cold drink the real trouble in fast food mealsEating out is often blamed for the obesity epidemic.

But is there really SUCH A BIG difference, between a sandwich with all the toppings eaten at home, followed by a low-fat twinkie and a hamburger eaten at McDonalds ?

Sort of….

But the difference has less to do with the fried up nature of the McDonalds meal and more to do with the accompanying drink.

It’s in the cold drink

Most Mom’s try to limit the availability of fizzy cold drinks on the home front, so the “fast” food type lunch, on the home front, invariably does not come with a huge cold drink. “Unlucky” kids have to make do with water, those not experiencing tough love, will typically get milk, juice or Oros™ squash.

A team from University of Illinois believe it is the supersized cold drink, accompanying the meal, that is a BIG part of the problem in fast food eating.

Picking apart fast food lunches

The Chicago team analyzed exactly what the average kid was eating, when they had lunch at a fast food joint, compared to having food, usually also quite fast, at home,

Among the factors investigated…..

  • Overall calorie count
  • Diet quality
  • Consumption of sugar sweetened beverages

# The average kid in the study, had been part of the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey between 2003 and 2008. As part of this study, food questionnaires were completed for 4 717 children between the ages of 2 and 11 and 4 699 adolescents, ranging in age from 12 to 19.

Soda fountain a wash with calories

As expected, restaurant meals tended to have higher amounts of sugar, total fat, saturated fat and sodium and lower amounts of nutrients overall.

This more of everything “BAD”, translated to more calories.

For little ones, a trip to a fast food joint added 126 calories to their day. For teens, the trip added 309 calories. A similar phenomenon, was seen when the family sat down for the meal, rather than ate it from the box, the calories consumed at full service restaurants, came in at an extra 160 calories for little ones and an extra 267 calories for teens.

A big part of those extra calories, came in the very large, accompanying cold drink.

And the calorie problem multiplied, when the restaurant provided FREE REFILLS, on top of the oversized first glass.

Fast fooding is the norm

Eating on the run happens a lot…..

Sometimes it is because you’re just too tired to care, often it is because you are too busy to cook from scratch or you’re just not anywhere near the kitchen, at feeding time.

The stats from this group of youngsters suggested 41 % of teens and about a third of little ones, consumed a fast food meal on any given day.

That adds up to a lot of extra calories over time. And in the long term….

Too many calories in, ultimately translates to more calories in the cupboard. Leaving extra wobbles and potential health troubles.

Don’t go or don’t combo

The easiest way to fix the problem, is to cut back on eating out, make it a weekly / monthly treat, not the standard way the family does dinner.

If you’re rushed off your feet and need fast meals. Eating fast food at home, even if it is coming out of a box, is probably still a better choice, because it won’t be coming with an oversized glass of coke. In an ideal world, make time to prepare REAL FOOD options that can be whipped out at a moments notice, the freezer and the microwave are your friend. I know, I know…. who has the time ?

When eating at a fast food joint – downsize your order or stop when you’re full.

Remember, a combo meal is designed to make it easy for the restaurant, but you can order individual items from the menu. Admittedly the clerk at the till, may forget to wish you a fantastic day – because your order will take a little more work.

Order what you need to be satisfied and watch the fizzy cold drink consumption. A combo may be cheaper, but you’re not saving money in the long run, if you have huge medical bills to pay at some future date.

Also, if you eat it or you don’t, there will still be starving people in Africa, so don’t be afraid to leave the food on the plate, once the “I AM FULL” signal comes through. And remember, just because they served it FAST, does not mean you need to eat it FAST.

Fast food in moderation

Puritan health gurus will tell you to avoid fast food like the plague, but modern living is for the most part, FAST living. Avoiding fast food all together is not easy.

Everything in moderation. And if you do nothing else, watch those liquid calories.

Fast-Food and Full-Service Restaurant Consumption Among Children and Adolescents: Effect on Energy, Beverage, and Nutrient Intake. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine (2012)  Powell LM, Nguyen BT.
 

 Interested in learning more about the chemistry behind those extra fat layers ?

Subcribe to E-spoons, to get e-mail updates once a month to learn how to keep your body chemistry balanced so you can burn off the extra fat.

View previous E-spoons.

Close

NOTE : Privacy & spam policy. Spoonful of Science will not rent, trade or sell the e-mail list to anyone. You can unsubscribe at any time by following the unsubscribe link.

Know someone who will find this post useful ? Share it on facebook, linkedin, twitter

Further reading

BPA spicing up cold drinks a diet of sweets and soda makes your brain dumb serve up dinner in bite size chunks
Cold drinks in cans are more than cans full of sugar Nibbling and sipping soda as you swot is causing brain rot The secret to eating less is to serve up a little more

The 7 Big Spoons™…. are master switches that turn health on.

balance eicosanoids rein in insulin dial down stress sleep vitamin D microflora think
Balance Eicosanoids Rein in insulin Dial down stress Sleep ! Increase Vit D Culivate microflora Think champion

Hire Dr Sandy from a Spoonful of Science to be the keynote speaker at your next event.

Did you learn something new or do you have a different perspective ? I’d love to hear from you so post me a comment below

Share Button
Posted in Obesity | Tagged calories, coke, cold drink, eating out, epidemic, fast fppd. Milk, fat, I am full, juice, liquid calories, obesity, restaurant meals, sugar

Sugar gremlins are REAL

Connect with us

facebook you tube pinterest 40 google plus 40 Linkedin

willpower report
 
Got a sugar gremlin ?yellow trick or treat your sugar gremlin
Read more.....
* indicates required
Close
  • Popular
  • Featured
  • Recent
  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    16940 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    16206 views / Posted
  • chewing gum relieving postoperative ileus

    A stick of chewing gum gets the gut going after surgery

    16114 views / Posted
  • carbonated water bubbles fill you up

    Fizzing up the water flattens your appetite

    14297 views / Posted
  • a see food diet

    It might be time to try the TRF see food diet – it works

    11510 views / Posted
  • sun extracting cholesterol

    Make sure you have your “annual” check-up in the summer time

    / Dr Sandy
  • sending your kid to bootcamp won't stop childhood obesity

    Moving more won’t stop your kid from getting fat

    / Dr Sandy
  • cholesterol at the scene of the accident

    Bone cells are stiffening up your arteries not cholesterol

    / Dr Sandy
  • brain size the problem in ADHD

    Are kids with ADHD just acting according to their brain age

    / Dr Sandy
  • plastering the blood vessel with calcium

    Calcium supplements are building bones and breaking hearts

    / Dr Sandy
  • compression stocking helping relieve sleep apnea

    A cheap way to breathe easier if you suffer from sleep apnea

    / Dr Sandy
  • fat cells creeping out while women is sleeping

    If you don’t include this in your diet – you won’t lose fat

    / Dr Sandy
  • muslce arriving at gym for an afternoon exercise session

    When is the best time to exercise ?

    / Dr Sandy
  • allergy belly

    Is your antihistamine making you fat ?

    / Dr Sandy
  • cholesterol number

    If your cholesterol number is a little high – DON’T WORRY

    / Dr Sandy

RSS Recent posts

Dr Sandy Dr Sandy Evans, PhD

Located in Johannesburg, South Africa

Book an appointment with Spoonful of Science using SetMore
Disclaimer : The stories and articles are provided as a service. Dr Sandy's opinions are for information only, and are not intended to diagnose or prescribe. For your specific diagnosis and treatment, consult your doctor or health care provider.
 
 

Connect with Dr Sandy

facebook 40
you tube 40
pinterest 40
google plus 40
linkedin 40
meetup 40
 

Categories

Featured posts

  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    16940 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    16206 views / Posted
  • chewing gum relieving postoperative ileus

    A stick of chewing gum gets the gut going after surgery

    16114 views / Posted
 

©2011-2019 Spoonful of Science

Menu

  • Meet Dr Sandy
  • Disclosure/disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Comment policy
  • Contact
Redirect Stakk
Thank You

Beat your SUGAR CRAVINGS, using biology, NOT psychology

Download our FREE REPORT entitled, "How to get the Willpower you Need to Trump Sugar's Power"

  • Do you have a sugar gremlin ?
  • Discover the biology behind sugar gremlins
  • Learn about the 10 weapons you can use to TAME YOUR SUGAR GREMLIN

Get instant access