Saturday, May 9, 2009

Musings on Fast Food

Pythagorus is on his way to McDonald's to get lunch for the four of us.

I'm getting french fries. I know academically that this is a stupid idea (I'm sending calm and relaxing messages to my pancreas), but sometimes you just need french fries. Or is it just me?

I've read Fast Food Nation, and I'm both proud that I've cut my fast food intake down significantly and appalled that I still partake in fast food (and crave it on a regular basis).

Do you eat fast food? Why or why not? How often? Do you think this is a problem? Is McDonald's the beginning of the end for the world as we know it?

Oh, and just curious, my morning cup of coffee from Dunkin' Donuts (the one made with skim milk and Splenda), I don't count that as fast food. Is that fair?

15 comments:

  1. Skim milk? Splenda? Oh, no! :)

    Personally, I'm trying to veer toward the more natural foods, like real butter and honey and whole milk, even if they are more fatty. Fat is actually essential for our health.

    Fries? Who can live without fries? My husband has been on a trip for two weeks and I lived on a diet of salad and fries:(

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  2. I rarely eat fast food. Too greasy, too salty. I grew up eating fresh veggies, fruits, meat, little deep fat fried. Didn't do soda's either. Consequently I don't have much desire for it. I cook most everything from scratch.

    That said, every once in a while I do love frech fries.

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  3. Klo...working in a deli my 4 fave words are "may contain and or" and the other one is mechanically separated meats hahahahahahahah…..please for the love of baby Jesus don't eat any fast food. Also Splenda is the new crack for this nation…Splenda this f**kers, whatever happened to good old cane sugar crack heads.

    I read fast food nation and watched super size me and I didn't eat fast food then. After the book and DVD I thanked Ricky Bobby and baby lord Jesus for that.

    If you need to carry a dictionary around with you when you do your groceries then your ticket to hell’s grocery store has been defined…..welcome crackers to the world of undefined foods have a safe journey.

    Huggs
    JB


    McDonald’s is the antichrist of restaurants and Marilyn Mason is they’re mascot…please no fries. It takes 6 months for your poor little pancreas to process those little critters.

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  4. I became a vegetarian for a while. Even though I have gone back to eating meat (was too hard to eat in with a hubby who wasn't a vegetarian) the time that I couldn't eat fast food (because much of it had animal products in it...yes, even the fries) really helped get my cravings to go away. If you really want to not crave as much fast food, just give it up for six months. You'll be surprised when you go back to being allowed to eat it that you just don't want it as much.

    I don't think your coffee counted as fast food :) Yummm...coffee!

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  5. I too grew up with home cooked from scratch food. I never understood as a child why my friends always raved about the food at my house. They weren't used to food that wasn't frozen or from a can. I thought they were crazy! I always looked forward to going to their house so that their parents would take us to McDonalds! Consequently, when I got my driver's license and a job I went CRAZY eating at fast food restaurants on a daily basis. It didn't much matter at the time since I was still so skinny. However, after having two children my body is no longer forgiving. Also, since having kids I have become more health conscious for their sake. I still enjoy fast food and LOVE HOT french fries! But, I try not to do it too often. I also try to keep foods real. I don't use artificial sweeteners (cane sugar is great!)But I am not opposed to a meal at Burger King or Wendy's especially on soccer or baseball nights when I have no time to cook!

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  6. Fast food has its uses. It's fast, its food, its convenient. As an occasional thing, I don't see anything wrong in it.

    Eating it every day, now that's a problem.

    p.s, What is Splenda?

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  7. Oh, I forget about the overseas thing sometimes : )

    It's a sugar substitute that is allegedly made from sugar. Or something like that. It's supposed to be healthier than Sweet and Low or Equal or any of that stuff because it's based from sugar. I'm not exactly sure, though ... that's a good question (and one I'll be googling momentarily lol)

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  8. Hi KLo!
    Thought I'd drop by!
    I don't eat at McDonalds at all- but we have this really great place called Five Guys here- they serve hot dogs an hamburgers- omigosh- and their fries! You can really only go there like once a month or so but it's so yummy and it's all made fresh for you- so that's a plus, I think!
    It was interesting reading all the other comments too!
    x

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  9. We get fast food every now and then--usually when we're dead tired and can't stomach the thought of working in the kitchen.

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  10. I don't eat fast food, but I do enjoy the same beverage at DD. In my opinion, a tasty, low-fat caffeinated delight is not fast food, it's necessity (especially for us teachers:)

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  11. I also read Fast Food Nation, and saw Supersize Me, and read The Omnivore's Dilemma. None of these were able to break me of my addiction to McDonalds french fries. They are just too good. Besides, once in a while won't kill you:)

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  12. I love fast food! Sonics is my favorite, but I still frequent McDonald's.

    I try to keep the visits down to once every other week, maybe twice a month, but it's hard when you're busy. It's quick, easy, yummy, and mess-free.

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  13. Our family eats fast food all the time. Yes its bad for us, yes we should eat better, but sometimes its just too hard to do. Besides, I am one of those "must have a burger and fries" kind of guys. Luckily I'm blessed with good genes, but anyway. Life is to be enjoyed, and as far as I'm concerned, a good batch of fries is one of life's best gifts. Woohooo! (diving into a vat of grease)

    note - the previous post was slightly sarcastic, but possibly slightly true as well. Take comments with a grain of salt.

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  14. I eat fast food occasionally. I am much like some of your readers, I really try to eat whole foods and if I can't read the ingredients I don't try to buy it. I went to the Freetown Yankee Market in Raymond on Saturday for Mothers Day to take mom and gram out for lunch and we were checking out all the goodies they had at the market while waiting for a booth to open up. They had these delicious salad dressings they had out for sample, I turned the bottle over to read the ingredients much to my pleasure to read, egg yolk, buttermilk, etc. Real ingredients...no hydrogenated anything. LOVE THAT!

    I stopped using splenda as well and started using Agave Nectar. Really trying to eat as clean as possible with the least amount of "chemicals" going in my body and on my body.

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  15. I feel so much better now : ) (although I guess I'll have to work on my Splenda intake ;))

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