Kids’ Meals Need a Time Out
Out of the 3,039 possible kids’ meal combinations 4% met nutrition criteria for preschoolers.
Rude Center at Yale
Health Concerns and Fast Food
Fast food is generally high in calories but low in nutritional value. The food is infused with salt, sugar, additives, and saturated fat.
Obesity Crisis
The #1 health problem in the United States is obesity, largely because of our life styles.
The average kid has more than 6 hours a screen time each day. During that time, students see plenty of commercials promoting fast food. Screen time is associated with sitting rather than being active and exercising.
Fast Food Lovers consume 187 more calories per day than people who don’t eat fast food. That adds up to about six extra pounds a year.
More than a 1/3 of adults in the United States are overweight (more than 20 percent over their ideal weight).
Obesity rates in 2-5 year olds has gone from 5.0% in 1980 to 12.4% in 2006.
Regularly consuming fast food has long-term consequences in adults and kids. While most people know obesity is frequently linked to eating too much fast food, few are aware of other illnesses kids can develop such as asthma, eczema, hay fever, kidney stones, and liver disease. In fact, obesity is now responsible for more liver disease than alcohol or Hepatitis. As “fast food kids” grow into adulthood, they have a significantly higher risk of stroke, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and cancer. And who knows what the long-term effects will be from eating these preservative-rich foods. After all, they are laced with hormones, highly refined sugars, artificial flavors, artificial colors and other additives, many of which have never actually been tested for safety, even though some of them have been linked to toxicity in both animals and humans.
Ever experience numbness, a burning sensation, tingling, facial pressure or tightness, chest pain, headache, nausea, rapid heartbeat, drowsiness, weakness or difficulty breathing for asthmatics? These are all symptoms that have been related to additives used in fast food.
So much for the additives. Let’s look at what’s left out. The process of refining fast foods often results in vital nutrients, vitamins and fiber being processed out. Nutrients processed out include vitamins A, B6, C, E, and calcium, iron and zinc. Your value meal is valueless when it comes to getting your daily recommended intake of vitamins and minerals.
Support better health for kids (and adults too), please be Fast Food Free for two weeks!