negative effects of fast food essay

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Is fast food bad for you? All you need to know about its nutrition and impacts

Fast food is often nutritionally poor and high in calories. Evidence demonstrates that overeating commercial fast food products can negatively impact health in both the short- and long-term.

Many fast food establishments now list the number of calories each item contains. However, this is only part of the consideration of whether it is healthy or not.

Fast food is typically poor in terms of nutrition . According to a 2015 review , fast food tends to contain various substances that are generally unhealthy. It is high in sugar, salt, saturated or trans fats, and many processed preservatives and ingredients. It also lacks some beneficial nutrients.

However, not all fast food has negative impacts, and a person can make an informed choice by researching the nutritional content of particular fast food items. People can find this information on the websites of most major restaurants.

That said, even the more healthy fast food items are generally high in sugar, salt, saturated fats, and trans fats. The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion notes that the typical person in the United States consumes too much of these food components.

Short-term impacts

Fast food is typically high in sugar, salt, and saturated or trans fats. The body’s reaction to these nutrients results in a range of short-term impacts when a person eats fast food.

Spike in blood sugar

Fast food breaks down quickly, causing a rapid spike in blood sugar because of the refined carbohydrates and added sugar. In turn, this causes an abnormally large insulin surge, resulting in a drop in blood sugar. This can cause people to feel tired. Insulin promotes further hunger within a short time after the meal.

Blood pressure

A small 2016 study found that consuming high levels of salt could immediately impact the proper functioning of a person’s blood vessels. Excess sodium intake also has links to fluid retention .

Increased inflammation

A single serving of fast food could increase inflammation throughout the body. A 2015 study found that one fast food meal high in saturated fat increased airway inflammation in individuals with asthma. This inflammation acts as a trigger for asthma attacks.

Affects nutrient intake

Fast food does not typically contain fresh fruit and vegetables. If an individual eats fast food frequently, they may find it challenging to reach their recommended daily intake of at least 5 servings of fruit and vegetables. They may also have difficulties reaching their ideal fiber intake, which according to the Food and Drug Administration is 28 grams per day.

Binge eating

Fast food is highly palatable, meaning the body breaks it down quickly in the mouth, and it does not need much chewing. Therefore, it activates the reward centers in the brain rapidly.

This combination trains the palate to prefer these highly processed, highly stimulating foods and reduces someone’s desire for whole, fresh foods.

Research from 2018 and other previous studies have suggested a link between fast food consumption and the incidence of food addiction for these low-nutrient items.

A small 2017 study of 15 adults found that a single day of high-fat overeating damaged insulin sensitivity. This can then trigger a cycle of binge eating or binge eating disorders .

Long-term impacts

There is plenty of well-researched evidence showing that regularly eating fast food can harm a person’s health.

A 2015 study identified the sometimes irreparable effects of eating fast food. Such risks include obesity , insulin resistance , type 2 diabetes , and various cardiovascular conditions .

This is because most fast food is high in sugar, salt, saturated fat, trans fats, processed ingredients, and calories. It is also generally low in antioxidants , fiber , and many other nutrients.

Digestive system

Many fast food meals are extremely low in fiber. Doctors associate low-fiber diets with a higher risk of digestive conditions such as constipation and diverticular disease, as well as reductions in healthy gut bacteria.

Immunity and inflammation

A 2019 review examined the effects of a Western diet on a person’s immune system. This diet consists of high amounts of sugar, salt, and saturated fat from only a few sources.

The authors noted that a Western diet could lead to higher inflammation, lower control of infection, higher cancer rates, and a higher risk of allergic and autoinflammatory disease.

Memory and learning

A 2020 paper suggests a link between unbalanced diets high in saturated fat and simple carbohydrates , typical of fast food, and a lower capacity for memory and learning. This sort of diet may also raise the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease .

In a 2018 review , the authors established a link between fast food consumption and an increase in asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis, and eczema .

Heart disease

The FDA suggests that a diet high in salt often increases a person’s blood pressure , making a person more prone to heart attacks , stroke , kidney disease, or heart disease .

The FDA also notes that a diet high in trans fats raises the amount of low-density lipoprotein or “bad” cholesterol and lowers the amount of high-density lipoprotein or “good” cholesterol. This means that a person is more likely to develop heart disease.

The United States Department of Agriculture points out that typical fast food contains a very high number of calories. If a person eats more calories than they burn each day, they gain weight, which may lead to obesity.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , obesity increases a person’s risk of developing a range of serious health conditions.

Another consequence of younger people regularly eating fast food is their unintentional lack of understanding of basic meal preparation, cooking, and healthy eating.

Over time, this perpetuates dependence on fast food, and people may not learn how to prepare healthy, balanced food in the home. Consuming healthy meals can support a person’s long-term health throughout their lifespan.

Mental health impact

Eating lots of fast food could also impact an individual’s mental health and make them more prone to depression and anxiety .

A 2021 study compared data from 322 males and 322 females age 30 or older. They found an association between healthy food such as leafy greens, nuts, and fish and positive mood, while the opposite was true of fast food. In addition, women reported significantly more negative associations with fast food than men.

Fast food tends to be high in salt, sugar, saturated fats, trans fats, calories, and processed preservatives and ingredients. A wealth of well-conducted research has proven the negative health effects of consuming too much of these food components.

In the short term, fast food impacts blood sugar and blood pressure, increases inflammation, and may mean an individual does not eat enough necessary nutrients. In the long term, a diet rich in fast food could lead to issues with digestion, immunity, inflammation, heart health, obesity, and more.

Not all fast food is bad, however. Certain menu items might be lower in these substances than others, while some fast food outlets might focus on providing more healthy options.

To preserve health, a person should try to identify fast food items that contain less salt, fat, sugar, and total carbohydrates, and generally try to limit the amount of fast food they consume.

Last medically reviewed on December 17, 2021

• Uncategorized
• Cardiovascular / Cardiology
• Nutrition / Diet
• Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness

How we reviewed this article:

• Anderson, A. S., et al. (2015). Early skeletal muscle adaptations to short-term high-fat diet in humans before changes in insulin sensitivity. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25820254/
• Bahadoran, Z., et al. (2015). Fast food pattern and cardiometabolic disorders: A review of current studies. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4772793/
• Begdache, L., et al. (2019). Assessment of dietary factors, dietary practices and exercise on mental distress in young adults versus matured adults: A cross-sectional study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29224485/
• Begdache, L., et al. (2021). Customization of diet may promote exercise and improve mental wellbeing in mature adults: The role of exercise as a mediator.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8161359/
• Cavka, A., et al. (2016). Short-term high salt intake reduces brachial artery and microvascular function in the absence of changes in blood pressure. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC6711169/
• Christ, A., et al. (2019). Western diet and the immune system: An inflammatory connection. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1074761319304169
• Dietary guidelines for Americans 2015-2020. (2015). https://health.gov/sites/default/files/2019-09/2015-2020_Dietary_Guidelines.pdf
• Fast food-Is it the enemy? (2012). https://www.obesityaction.org/resources/fast-food-is-it-the-enemy/
• Fuhrman J. (2018). The hidden dangers of fast and processed food.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6146358/
• How to understand and use the nutrition facts label. (2020). https://www.fda.gov/food/new-nutrition-facts-label/how-understand-and-use-nutrition-facts-label
• Lemeshow, A. R., et al. (2017). Food and beverage consumption and food addiction among women in the Nurses' Health Studies.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5952620/
• López-Taboada, I., et al. (2020). Western diet: Implications for brain function and behavior.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7719696/
• Parry, S. A., et al . (2017). A single day of excessive dietary fat intake reduces whole-body insulin sensitivity: The metabolic consequence of binge eating.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579612/
• Quagliani, D., et al . (2016). Closing America's fiber intake gap: Communication strategies from a food and fiber summit.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6124841/
• Restrepo, B. J., et al. (2018). New national menu labeling provides information consumers can use to help manage their calorie intake. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2018/october/new-national-menu-labeling-provides-information-consumers-can-use-to-help-manage-their-calorie-intake/
• Sodium in your diet. (2021). https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-education-resources-materials/sodium-your-diet
• Swanson, S. M., et al . (2018). In the clinic: Acute colonic diverticulitis.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6430566/
• The health effects of overweight and obesity. (2020). https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/effects/index.html
• Trans fat. (2018). https://www.fda.gov/food/food-additives-petitions/trans-fat
• Wang, C. S., et al. (2018). Is the consumption of fast foods associated with asthma or other allergic diseases? https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29974559/

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The Hidden Dangers of Fast and Processed Food *

The fundamental concern as we look to reform health in America is the known reality that most chronic diseases that afflict Americans are predominantly lifestyle induced; and the belief is that the vast majority of heart attacks and strokes could be prevented if people were willing to adopt healthy lifestyle behaviors. In addition, healthy lifestyles would impact a significant number of cancers which are also believed to be related to lifestyle exposures, especially to obesity, cigarettes, and other toxins.

Over the past 50 years, the health of Americans has gotten worse, and now 71% of Americans are overweight or obese—not 66%, which was reported 5 years ago. 1 That means a staggering 100 million people in America are obese. Today, eating processed foods and fast foods may kill more people prematurely than cigarette smoking. 2

Authorities determined the 71% figure by classifying people with a body mass index (BMI) over 25 kg/m 2 as overweight or obese. Yet in long-lived societies such as in the “Blue Zones” (Ikaria, Greece; Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica; and Loma, Linda California) and wherever we find groups of centenarians, we observe a healthy BMI below 23 kg/m 2 , not 25 kg/m 2 . If we use above 23 kg/m 2 as the demarcation for overweight or obesity, then we find that 88% of Americans are overweight. And out of the approximately 10% that are of normal weight, the majority of those so-called “normal weight individuals” are either cigarette smokers, or suffer from alcoholism, drug addiction or dependency, autoimmune disease, occult cancers, inflammatory disorders, autoimmune conditions, digestive disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, and other illnesses that lower their body weight. Therefore, perhaps that only about 5% of the American population is at a normal weight as a result of eating healthy and living a healthy life. A recent study documented that only 2.7% of Americans adopt a relatively healthy lifestyle by combining exercise with healthy eating. 3 The Standard American Diet (SAD) is clearly not a healthy diet.

I use the term “Fast Food Genocide” because most don’t understand the depth and breadth of the harm as a large segment of our society eats a diet worse than the dangerous SAD. Many people recognize that junk food, fast food, processed food, white flour, sugar, maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, and all the junk people are eating contribute to in obesity, diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, dementia and cancer, but many don’t realize the strong causative role an unhealthy diet may have in mental illness. Currently, 1 in 5 Americans suffers from a psychiatric disorder. And many people don’t realize the harm that processed foods have on Americans living in urban areas where they don’t have easy access to whole, fresh foods.

These unfortunate folks live in what we call “food deserts,” with reduced availability to fresh fruits and vegetables. Because of the limited access to supermarkets, they eat more unhealthy fast and processed foods and end up having 7 times the risk of early-life stroke (before age 45), putting people in nursing homes in their 30s, 40s, and 50s. 4 - 7

The vulnerable poor in these areas also have double the risk of heart attack, double the risk of diabetes, and 4 times the risk of renal failure 8 - 10 ; Unfortunately, the decrease in life span due to food inequality is shocking but rarely discussed. A substantial proportion of people in these urban environments are overweight, prediabetic, or fully diabetic. Researchers determined that compared with other areas in America with easy access to supermarket food, that the YPLL (Years of Potential Life Lost) for an overweight diabetic living in a zone classified as a food desert was a shocking 45 years! 11 , 12

A link may even exist between fast food, processed food, commercial baked goods, and sweets and destruction of brain cell and a lowering of intelligence. Candy and sweetened baked goods may even stimulate the brain in an addictive fashion, which can lead to more serious illnesses.

The nutritional fundamentals accepted by the World Health Organization and most nutritional authorities today include vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and fruit as healthy foods; and salt, saturated fat, and excess sugar as disease causing. Excessive amounts of animal products may lead to premature aging, increased risk of chronic disease and higher all-cause mortality. Multiple studies have been published on hundreds of thousands of people, followed for decades showing that the objective endpoint of death is increased with higher amounts of animal product consumption. 13 - 17 Furthermore, refined carbohydrates may not just lead to being overweight and diabetic but also contribute to dementia, mental illness, and cancer. 18 - 21 There is considerable evidence today that heart disease is not only promoted by saturated fat and increased animal products but also by refined carbohydrates, including white rice, white bread, sugar, honey, maple syrup, and agave nectar. 22 - 25

Research has shown that excess calories shorten lifespan, whereas moderate caloric restriction slows the aging process and protects the body and brain. Americans consume more calories than any other population; and they consume foods, many of which have minimal or no nutritional value (soda and alcohol as examples). So let’s consider the individual who is consuming 50 excess calories per day. What will be the short- and long-term result? Fifty excess calories per day, over and above your basic metabolic needs, over a 10-year period, adds about 50 pounds of extra body weight. The excess weight increases the risk of multiple chronic illnesses, cancers, and also takes many years of life away from the individual simply as a result of consuming only 50 calories a day too many.

Conversely, if an individual consumed 50 calories a day less that their metabolic requirements what would happen then? Would he or she become too thin, anorexic, and unhealthy? Would their bones fall apart? Obviously not! When you moderately caloric-restrict, even a small amount such as 50 to 100 calories a day, weight remains about the same, the person is slim, not too thin, and healthy. He or she will have a lower body fat percentage, and the skeletal mass, bones, and muscle mass are strong. In this scenario, the metabolic rate would slow down accordingly. The respiratory quotient, (the number of calories lost through respiration) would decrease, the body temperature would lower, and thyroid function would decrease slightly, all lowering the metabolic rate, which overall may result in a slowing of the aging process. The secret to a long life and freedom from chronic disease may be simply to moderately reduce calories in order to slow down our metabolic rate. The only behavior proven scientifically to dramatically increase life span in every species of animals, including primates, is to lower caloric intake while maintaining an environment of micronutrient adequacy, assuring that we have exposure to every micronutrient humans need. The American diet is also deficient in antioxidants and phytochemicals that are needed for normal immune function, for maximizing brain health, protecting against dementia, chronic illness, cancer, and premature aging.

A nutritarian diet is designed to establish excellent micronutrient intake without excess calories . A nutritarian diet is designed to help prolong human life span, decrease the risk of cancer, and keep the brain functioning well for many years. This principle is represented by the equation I use: H = N /C, which means your healthy life expectancy (H) is proportional to the micronutrient (N) per calorie intake (C) over your life span. This means that we are encouraged to seek out foods that are rich in nutrients. We should try to limit or exclude empty-calorie foods and drinks. We should also limit or avoid calorically dense foods, and not eat for recreation or when we are not hungry.

A nutritarian diet is rich in phytochemicals and antioxidants. It is a vegetable-based, utilizing a wide assortment of colorful vegetables, root vegetables, green vegetables, peas, beans, mushrooms, onions, nuts, seeds, and some intact whole grains. While the standard American diet and most traditional diets are grain-based and lack sufficient exposure to the broad spectrum of antioxidants and phytochemicals (with their anticancer effects), it is important to note that not all plant-based diets are equally cancer-protective. As an example, a rice-heavy, macrobiotic diet limits phytochemical diversity, and brown rice produced in this country is contaminated with arsenic, extensively documented by Consumer Reports and white rice is refined, high glycemic food, and therefore not a healthy starch.

In comparison, the SAD is almost the opposite of a nutritarian diet. Over 55% of the SAD’s calories are processed foods, and about 33% of calories come from animal products. If we are looking at the amount of fresh produce (fruits and vegetables) consumed in America, the food consumption data reports about 10%; but in actuality, it is less than 5%, because they include French fries and ketchup in the definition of “produce!” The point here is that processed foods such as bread, pasta, salad oil, mayonnaise, doughnuts, cookies, rice cakes, breakfast bars, chips, soda, candy, and popcorn do not contain a significant micronutrient benefit. A piece of chicken is like a bagel, because they are both rich sources of macronutrients (calories), but neither one contains the necessary amounts of micronutrients, especially the antioxidants and phytochemicals only found in plants.

The high glycemic white flour products with added sweetening agents, flood the bloodstream with glucose without fiber, nutrients, or phytochemicals; and these baked goods are also high in acrylamides and advanced glycation end-products, further increasing the glycoproteins in our tissues. The resulting spike in glucose leads to abnormally high amounts of insulin, which will also promote angiogenesis, which fuels the growth of fat cells, increases cellular replication and tumor growth. The liberal amount of animal protein (including chicken which many incorrectly believe is the more healthy meat) consumed by most Americans promotes excessive insulin-like growth factor–1 (IGF-1), making a synergistic “sandwich” of insulin and IGF-1, which may accelerate aging of the brain, interfere with cellular detoxification and repair, and promote cancer. 26 The SAD has created a nutritional disaster and a significant health crisis that will not be solved by governmental “health care reform.”

Now when we think about “fast food” we’re not just referring to the food in fast food restaurants. Fast foods include chips, soda, cookies, candy, breakfast cereals, bars, French fries, burgers, pizza, white flour baked goods, and all other high-calorie, low-nutrient foods that people often eat multiple times per day. These are processed foods and for many, are the primary source of calories. These fast foods have certain characteristics: They can be accessed easily and quickly; they don’t need to be prepared; they come out of a bag or box ready to go right into your mouth. You can eat them rapidly and they’re absorbed very quickly into the bloodstream. These fast foods typically contain multiple chemicals and synthetic ingredients. They are calorically dense, highly flavored, and nutritionally barren. Fast foods typically contain extra corn syrup, sugar, artificial sweeteners, salt, coloring agents, and other potentially disease promoting chemicals.

When calories flood the bloodstream rapidly they have dramatic biological effects. Let’s compare 200 calories of white bread to 200 calories of beans. The white bread would be metabolized into simple sugars (glucose) which enters the bloodstream in 5 to 10 minutes. This requires a rapid increase in insulin; and the rapid insulin response will remain for hours. On the other hand, the carbohydrates from beans will take much more time to be digested and, as a result these calories enter the bloodstream slowly. Essentially, the calories will trickle in over hours. When eating beans, a small amount of glucose enters the blood each minute and therefore you won’t need much of an insulin response to deal with this amount of sugar. As mentioned above, the buildup of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) accelerates aging and chronic disease. 27 , 28 When a diabetic suffers from kidney failure, blindness, or a leg amputation, a major causative factor is the buildup of AGEs in the tissues. Interestingly, these same glycated end-products and glycoproteins build up in the tissues of people who are not diabetic but who continually expose themselves to excess sugar and white flour products.

Next, it is important to understand that oils are also processed foods. When consumed, oil enters the bloodstream rapidly similar to high glycemic carbohydrates. Anything cooked in oil should be considered a fast food. Beans, nuts, and seeds are whole foods whose calories are absorbed gradually over hours. In contrast, the calories from oil are absorbed rapidly, and are largely empty calories (with insignificant micronutrients and no fiber)—a combination that leads to obesity, disease, and premature aging.

If I set up a buffet dinner and I asked all the guests to form 2 lines and then gave everyone on the right side a tablespoon of olive oil, and each of those on the left side an apple to consume while they were waiting in line, those who ate the 65-calorie apple will generally eat 65 less calories from the buffet. But those who had the 120-calorie tablespoon of oil will not usually consume 120 calories less. The oil contains neither fiber, nor micronutrients and contains nothing to decrease the appestat. A matter of fact, if you put oil on food, it may actually increase one’s appetite. Not only will these individuals not eat fewer calories—they will eat even more than the 120 calories from the oil. 29 When added or mixed into food, oil drives overeating behavior.

Nutrients and fiber are needed to control the appestat, so you consume a healthy amount of calories. My experience has demonstrated with thousands of patients, the more nutrient and fiber dense your diet becomes the lower your drive to overeat. 30 This is extremely important, because even a moderate amount of extra fat on the body induces more rapid aging and increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancer. A mild degree of caloric restriction becomes comfortable and achievable when the diet is high in micronutrients and fiber. When you have enough micronutrients and fiber in your diet, you don’t feel driven to overeat. But when you don’t have enough micronutrients and fiber in your diet, you become a food-craving, overeating machine.

Even worse is what happens when you eat food fried in oil because fried food may create carcinogenic and mutagenic aldehydes. 31 Food that is fried such as in a fast food restaurant is usually cooked in oil that has been heated and used multiple times. One serving of French fries or fried chicken that is cooked in a fast food restaurant has 100 times the level of aldehydes designated as safe by the World Health Organization. Even the fumes are so toxic they increase the risk of cancer. People working in restaurants that fry the food, or those working in a movie theater making popcorn, have a heighted risk of lung and other cancers, even if they don’t eat any of the fried foods. 32

The explosion of fast food restaurants has significantly increased the intake of fried foods, and people are now eating 1000 times the amount of soybean oil compared with the early 1900s. 33 Humans never ate 400 calories of oil a day the way people do in America, especially in the Southern states—which are known for the highest stroke and heart attack rates in the world. 34 When you use nuts and seeds as your source of fat as opposed to oil, we see the opposite effect.

The Physician’s Health Study, the Nurses’ Health Study, Iowa Women’s Health Study, the Adventist Health Study—any study with large numbers of people followed for decades—demonstrates the relationship between nut and seed consumption and longer life span. We always have to give more credence to clinical research studies that involve large numbers of people followed over decades using objective endpoints such as mortality. When you do that, you find that people who consume nuts and seeds regularly have lower cancer rates, lower cardiovascular death rates, lower sudden cardiac death, less irregular heartbeats, and an increase in life span.

A 2015 meta-analysis that included over 44 000 deaths demonstrated an almost 40% decrease in cardiovascular mortality for people eating nuts and seeds regularly (one serving a day). The European PreviMed study, which randomized 7216 individuals to nuts or olive oil as part of a Mediterranean diet showed a 39% decrease in all-cause mortality in the nut eaters. 35

When we look at the health implications of animal protein we should compare this type of nutrition with plant-based proteins, especially when an individual has cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, or even cancer. When your protein comes from beans, nuts, seeds, and greens, the body more gradually assimilates a complete array of amino acids to make functional proteins and hormones, keeping IGF-1 production much lower. Adequate amounts of plant protein keep IGF-1 in that moderate range, between 100 and 175, which is where it should be. The average American’s IGF-1 level is around 225, which is a level which has been linked to cancer promotion. When we eat a variety of plants, we get a full balance of amino acids, which slowly enter the blood—and we also digest some of the bacteria in the digestive track and some of the cells that slough off of the villi endothelium, enabling the utilization of partially incomplete plant proteins, now made complete. Conversely, when you eat large portions of meat, eggs, or cheese, the amino acid mix enters the bloodstream faster and because it is already biologically complete, it stimulates excessive amounts of IGF-1, again increasing the risk of cancer. 36 - 43

The average American consumes 10 to 20 ounces a day of animal products, whereas the safe level of consumption is likely less than 10 ounces per week . My estimate of 10% of calories as an upper limit of safe consumption is for a person with favorable genetics and is still likely more animal products than ideal for the nonelderly adults. It may be the case that under 5% of calories from animal products would be more ideal for life span and for facilitating disease reversal. Of course, any diet designed to optimize health should include a broad array of colorful plants with phytochemicals and antioxidants, which have been shown to increase life span and prevent cancer.

The animal products served at fast food restaurants are making the health of the population much worse, creating dangerous carcinogens from the food being grilled, barbecued, and fried at high temperatures. The World Health Organization has classified processed meats (hot dogs, sausage, bacon, and lunch meats) a class 1 carcinogen. AGEs are also highest in barbecued and fried animal products which also contain cancer-causing chemicals such as heterocyclic amines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and lipid peroxidases, which are mutagenic.

There are 2 phases of the digestive cycle: the anabolic phase, when you are eating and digesting, and the catabolic phase, when digestion has ceased. When you are eating and digesting food, the body turns those calories into stored glycogen, increasing fat storage and the storage of waste. During this phase of the digestive cycle, growth hormones and fat storage hormones are activated.

When your body is finished digesting, you enter the catabolic phase, where the stored glycogen and fat are utilized for energy. This is the phase when your body can most effectively detoxify and enhance cellular repair. It is the time when the liver and kidneys work together to remove aldehydes, AGEs, and other toxic metabolites. Repair and healing is enhanced during the catabolic phase when you are not eating food.

Most Americans have made their bodies so toxic, that when they enter the catabolic phase of the digestive cycle, they feel uncomfortable. That means they feel fatigue, headache, stomach cramping or fluttering, anxiety, or other uncomfortable symptoms when they stop digesting food and the body starts to mobilize waste and repair the damage. They typically interpret these symptoms as hunger or low blood sugar, because they feel better if they eat again—even though there is no biological need for calories at this time; and so they just get fatter and sicker. Every addiction has a “high” during the caloric rush and a “low” during withdrawal and repair from the disease-causing diet and resultant metabolic wastes and toxins that accrue from it. The American diet results in withdrawal symptoms and discomfort which promotes overeating and too-frequent eating. The lower the quality of the food consumed, the more discomfort felt when not eating and digesting, which makes it very difficult to maintain a healthy body weight.

If you’re healthy and eating nutritious food, you feel nothing when you enter the catabolic phase, with no desire to eat again until glycogen stores are nearly exhausted. True hunger is a mild sensation felt in the throat and base of the neck. True hunger heightens taste sensitivity too, making eating more pleasurable. True hunger directs when you should eat and therefore it’s more difficult to become overweight if you pay attention to the signs your body sends to your brain. Being overweight requires eating outside of the demands of true hunger, either recreationally or because of withdrawal symptoms from improper eating, stimulating the overconsumption of calories.

Enhanced detoxification—reduction of metabolic waste, aldehydes, and AGEs—occurs most effectively in the catabolic phase. That means the longer you live in the catabolic phase of the digestive cycle, the longer you live. If you finish dinner earlier or have a lighter dinner, and you have a 13-hour window between the end of dinner and the start of breakfast, you are going to live longer. A recent study had women with breast cancer followed for 10 years and found that those who finished dinner earlier and had a 13-hour window before the start of breakfast had a 26% reduction in the risk of death or recurrence from breast cancer. 44 , 45 The increased nighttime window was also linked to improved glycemic control and a lower HbA1c (glycated hemoglobin). They had no better diet, no different number of calories, no better food; they just finished dinner earlier.

The goal for excellent health is to eat as infrequently as possible. Many people believe just the opposite and eat frequent small meals that increase endothelial dysfunction leading to an increased risk for arteriosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. In addition, all the fad diets encourage people to make the wrong choices about what and when to eat. Many suggest the use of frequent high-protein meals so as not to feel the effects of normal detoxification. When the digestive track is continually busy, it results in accelerated aging.

Processed and fast foods are also high in salt. The fast and processed food manufacturers don’t just put salt on the French fries and on the meat, they also put salt in the French fry batter and inside the chopped meat. They also include high fructose corn syrup in most foods. The added fat, sugar, and salt create a taste that makes people crave these foods, a sensation that many describe as an addiction. Both sugar and salt intake increase stroke risk, especially when consumed daily for years. Additionally, what is generally not appreciated is that the regular consumption of artificially sweetened soda creates more of a stroke risk. 46 High salt does not merely raise blood pressure; it also causes microvascular hemorrhaging, which damages the interior walls of the blood vessels in the brain and increases permeability and the propensity for hemorrhagic stroke. 47 , 48

Over the past 30 years, we’ve also seen an explosion of diabetes in Japan, Korea, and China, occurring at a lower body weight than we typically see in America, likely because the cumulative effects of eating more fast food, more oil and sugar, along with all of the white rice (a refined, high glycemic food), which they already had in their diet.

We know that people have the power to change when significant effort and attention is directed to the problems at hand. With good information, emotional support, increased food availability and food preparation instruction, we have found people enthused and willing to work together for change. They don’t have to be convinced of the tragic dangers of fast food; they see the obesity, diabetes, leg amputations, strokes, and blindness all around them. But if people don’t have good information, then they don’t have a choice. If they don’t have access to healthy, affordable food, and they don’t know how to make it taste good, then they are not given a chance to change.

The goal for physicians and other health care professionals is to work to transform America’s inner cities into zones of nutritional excellence. Our nation’s pride and heritage are based on the equal opportunity to achieve the American dream of prosperity and happiness. This critical information needs to be spread and put into action by community activists, teachers, educators, celebrities, health professionals, athletes, and politicians. The more people who know the critical importance of eating healthfully, and the more they take a stand, the greater the effect will be on transforming the health of all in America. By working together, we can save millions of lives.

Acknowledgments

This work was presented at Lifestyle Medicine 2017, October 22-25; Tucson, AZ.

Authors’ Note: The opinions presented in this article are those of the author and may not represent those of the Guest Editor, Editor, or the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding: The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Ethical Approval: Not applicable, because this article does not contain anystudies with human or animal subjects.

Informed Consent: Not applicable, because this article does not contain anystudies with human or animal subjects.

Trial Registration: Not applicable, because this article does not contain anyclinical trials.

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Cause and Effect of Fast Food: the Impact on Health and Society

Table of contents, causes of fast food consumption, effects on physical well-being, cultural and societal impact, economic considerations, promoting healthier lifestyles, conclusion: balancing convenience and health.

• Ludwig, D. S., Peterson, K. E., & Gortmaker, S. L. (2001). Relation between consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks and childhood obesity: a prospective, observational analysis. The Lancet, 357(9255), 505-508.
• Malik, V. S., Pan, A., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2013). Sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain in children and adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 98(4), 1084-1102.
• Story, M., Kaphingst, K. M., Robinson-O'Brien, R., & Glanz, K. (2008). Creating healthy food and eating environments: policy and environmental approaches. Annual Review of Public Health, 29, 253-272.
• Stuckler, D., McKee, M., Ebrahim, S., & Basu, S. (2012). Manufacturing epidemics: the role of global producers in increased consumption of unhealthy commodities including processed foods, alcohol, and tobacco. PLOS Medicine, 9(6), e1001235.
• World Health Organization. (2016). Report of the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity. WHO Press.

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An opinion essay about fast food.

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Is fast food popular in your country? Do you think it causes health problems or any other kinds of problems?

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The Consequences of Fast Food Essay

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Persuasive Against Fast Food

Alarming facts on fast food, effects of fast food, solutions to the fast food problem, supporters of fast food, negative effects of the end of fast foods, positive effects of the end of fast foods, works cited.

Over $100 billion are used each year on fast food consequently over 60 percent of Americans have become obese. You ask, so what? Fast food, as I will show later, is ranked second in the death cause list.

There are those who know the effects of fast food yet choose to ignore it while savoring its taste, yet there are masses of people who are completely unaware of the health dangers they could be bestowing on themselves. Fast food is unhealthy and people should seek different alternatives of obtaining nutrients for their diet.

The most evident effect of fast food is obesity among others and these effects are what will be considered as the basis of discouraging the intake of fast food while encouraging other healthier options.

Over 60% of Americans are either obese or over weight; over $100 billion is spent on fast food in a year; before most children can speak they can recognize McDonald’s; one would have to walk seven hours without stopping to burn calories gained from eating a coke, fry and a big Mac; obesity is known to cause other diseases like- hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease, asthma, hyperuricaemia among others (Facts 1). Unhealthy eating, with fast food as part of the cause, is the second in ranking when it comes to causes of death (Organic 1).

Control of the intake of fast food needs to be considered with utmost seriousness. The real cause of obesity (considered as a national epidemic) should be addressed and it will incorporate even the distributors of fast food.

This is because; in as much as the consumer or fast food partakers are to be held responsible for their indulgence, the restaurants are partly to blame because of the methods they use in food preparation.

In her article, Burgers on the brain, Martindale states that some research by scientists indicates that these foods could have effects on your brain in such a way that one cannot practice self-control and it could cause addiction (Organic 1).

The following are the summarized effects of indulging in fast foods (Freiboth 1):

• Fast foods increase our appetite by making us eat more than we should. This is because of the high energy density content it has.
• The amount of calories gained from eating at fast food restaurants like McDonald’s, KFC or Burger King, leads to people gaining weight and becoming obese. This is a conclusive research from the Medical Research Council Human Nutrition Center, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
• With increased arteries come clogged arteries which increase the rate of getting heart attacks.
• Reduced habits of physical exercises also enhance the diseases and implore people to be lazier.

Are consumers causing all these on themselves? Who is also responsible for intake of fast foods? Marketing of these types of foods by the fast food outlets and different companies have a part to play because of the advertising they are constantly carrying out (Ruskin & Schor 1). Advertising targets all groups from children to adults so all are affected and enticed to purchase the products.

Another part played by these companies is the offers they constantly have, like “value meals” where one is able to enjoy even more food and it costs them much less and they also give provision of all meals including breakfast (Murray 1).

Weintraub suggested that the first place to seek a solution would be from homes especially since people eat less from there. In his article: Parents should be involved in teaching their children healthier eating methods/alternatives and to encourage outdoor activities; fast food outlets in the environs of school should also be banned (Weintraub 1).

Murray lists propositions by Brownell who proposed some policies to enhance the fight against fast food: community environment should be spacious enough to allow outdoor activities like walking or cycling, regulation of advertisements, banning of fast foods in schools, making provision for cheaper healthy food, by reducing the price by about 70%, so as not to contend with cheap fast food. The above solutions have been known to at least reduce the intake of fast food though instant results should not be expected.

There are those even with all the gross effects of fast food will still enlist why fast food is still a viable option. Some advantages of fast food include: the simplicity of the process (no preparation required) hence saving time, they come in a lot of variety, it is fast (the time taken to order and receiving the food is very short) hence its name (Wolverson 1).

While there may be some truth to all this, there are still very many factors that would make one opt for fresh and healthier food: it is eventually costly, since with increased appetite, one is likely to order another round of food and the frequency of eating fast food also makes it expensive in the long run; it is not considered as a balanced diet; quality is also compromised due to the urgency of preparation (Wolverson 1). Fresh and healthy food is the best alternative when it comes to food since one will eventually be saved from medical costs!

There are industries that will definitely feel the impact of reduces intake of fast food. These include the fast food outlets like the McDonald’s and KFC. They are already suffering from the many lawsuits on the basis of not disclosing the health effects of their foods (Organics 1).

With consumers spending over $100 billion a year, this amount is definitely set to go down, having economic effects on the company’s profits and might even see the closure of some outlets. To some extent the medical industry that also benefits from treating diseases associated with poor eating habits will see a decline in their customers.

In the long run, if the current generation children are taught healthier alternatives, the cases of obesity will definitely reduce and nations will be boasting of healthy citizens. The demand for healthier food will also increase which will definitely cause the prices to favor consumers.

Everyone should cultivate the habit and culture of preparing home meals in order to avoid the need of eating out and having fast food. This guarantees food of good quality while enhancing maximum health benefits. Consumption of fruits and vegetables should also be a non-negotiable for everyone, such that it should be included in all meal intakes.

Physical exercise should also be adapted so that laziness is avoided and risks to disease contraction reduced. Fast foods should be discouraged at all costs and if it requires the use of laws to enforce this, so be it because the benefits a person reaps from eating healthily far outweigh the burden brought about by indulging in fast foods.

Facts. Fast Food Facts. Vivavegie. Web.

Freiboth, Glenn. 6 Negative Effects of Eating Fast Food. Ezine Articles, 2011. Web.

Murray, Bridget. Fast-Food Culture Serves Up Super-Size Americans . APA, 2001. Web.

Organic. Fast Food is a Major Public Health Hazard. Organic Consumers. Web.

Ruskin, Gary and Schor, Juliet. Junk Food Nation: Who’s to Blame for Childhood Obesity? Sanjuan, 2005. Web.

Weintraub, Daniel. The Battle Against Fast Food Begins In The Home. Murrieta, 2002. Web.

Wolverson, Natalie. The Pros and Cons of Fast Food. Helium, 2009. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2018, May 29). The Consequences of Fast Food. https://ivypanda.com/essays/fast-food/

"The Consequences of Fast Food." IvyPanda , 29 May 2018, ivypanda.com/essays/fast-food/.

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IvyPanda . 2018. "The Consequences of Fast Food." May 29, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/fast-food/.

1. IvyPanda . "The Consequences of Fast Food." May 29, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/fast-food/.

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IvyPanda . "The Consequences of Fast Food." May 29, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/fast-food/.

Essay on Effects of Fast Food on Health

Students are often asked to write an essay on Effects of Fast Food on Health in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Effects of Fast Food on Health

Introduction.

Fast food is popular because it’s convenient and tasty. But, it’s often unhealthy.

Nutritional Content

Obesity risk.

Eating too much fast food can lead to weight gain. This increases the risk of obesity, a serious health problem.

Heart Problems

Fast food’s high fat and salt content can contribute to heart problems, like high blood pressure and heart disease.

250 Words Essay on Effects of Fast Food on Health

Fast food, a staple in today’s hurried society, is often blamed for a variety of health issues. Its impact on health is multifaceted, affecting not only physical well-being but also mental health.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Fast foods are typically high in unhealthy fats, sugars, and sodium while being low in essential nutrients. These nutritional imbalances can lead to deficiencies, which manifest as fatigue, poor concentration, and weakened immune system.

Obesity and Related Diseases

The high calorie content of fast food contributes to obesity, a global health crisis. Obesity, in turn, increases the risk of serious diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer.

Mental Health Implications

Recent research suggests a link between fast food consumption and mental health issues. High sugar and fat content may contribute to depression, while the lack of essential nutrients can exacerbate anxiety and mood disorders.

While fast food offers convenience, its health effects are far-reaching. As consumers, we must make informed choices about our dietary habits, balancing convenience with health. As a society, we must advocate for healthier fast food options and improved nutritional education.

500 Words Essay on Effects of Fast Food on Health

The nutritional profile of fast food.

Fast food is notorious for its high caloric content, saturated and trans fats, sodium, and sugar, while being low in essential nutrients like vitamins, minerals, and fiber. This skewed nutritional profile contributes to the onset of various health issues.

Obesity and Fast Food

One of the most visible effects of fast food consumption is the rise in obesity rates. The high energy density of fast food, combined with its palatability, promotes overeating. This chronic energy surplus leads to weight gain and obesity. Obesity, in turn, is a risk factor for numerous health conditions such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer.

Fast Food and Cardiovascular Health

Fast food’s high sodium and saturated fat content contribute to elevated blood pressure and cholesterol levels, which are precursors to heart disease. Furthermore, trans fats found in fast food have been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, as they raise bad cholesterol levels and lower good cholesterol levels.

Impact on Digestive and Metabolic Health

Effects on mental health.

Emerging research suggests that fast food may also affect mental health. Diets high in fat and sugar can cause alterations in brain chemistry that lead to symptoms of depression and anxiety. Additionally, the blood sugar spikes and crashes associated with high-sugar fast foods can cause mood swings and impair cognitive function.

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Nutrition: Causes and Effects of Fast Food

The modern world is a rapidly developing place in all spheres of humanity, and productions of fast food and access to take-out combined with little exercise have raised very many health concerns. It causes a change in human behavior, perception of self-image, and health risks that pose a serious threat.

There are several issues and causes of obesity in the US. The primary one is the culture and the changes regarding what is acceptable. Diabetes and heart disease are becoming predominant, as extra weight puts a strain on the heart, as well as the rest of the body. The whole nation is affected, as increased health risks put pressure on the healthcare system and affect the economical wellbeing of the country.

The individuals are suffering just as much the limited lifestyle causes people to eat faster and more in a single time. Thus people face the danger of significant life-shortening because of detrimental health effects. The long working hours, the availability of junk food, and the relaxation time that is characterized by being at home and little activity, all factors that contribute to people becoming overweight (Fedorak 51).

The fact that the United States is experiencing an increase in its influence over the world and pop culture adds to the negative effects on the domestic, as well as international populations. The economic development and its high level is another reason why people are forced to lead unhealthy lifestyles. The increase in pollution and industrialization, as well as the rise in technology and a lesser need to contribute physically, heighten the body’s inability to fight excess weight.

This sort of issue can be seen all over the world, as people are becoming more dependent on technology and the ease of avoiding activities (Wilk 7). Previously, people had to walk longer distances, contribute to farming and other active work, whereas today, office employment, internet and ability to get easy access to food or even order it without leaving the house, made society very inactive.

Some medical procedures, such as operations and minor adjustments to the physical appearance, have given people an easy way out, depleting will power and care for future health. The modern society has changed so much that even human genes have adjusted to the changes and make people predisposed to obesity-related diseases. Industrialization and changes in the pace of life have caused fast food to become a factor that affects people’s life as a result of social shifts.

The nutrition and the type of food that is consumed play a great role. Someone might be busy with work and eat only once a day. This becomes detrimental to health, as the body is “hit” with an extreme amount of food at one time. This makes the organism store a portion of proteins as fat so that they can be processed at a later time. Technology has modified foods making cooking times shorter and nutrition almost absent (Schlosser 6).

The picture would be very different if people exercised more and rationed their food, to be separated into three to five meals daily. The cultural view that being overweight is acceptable, and people are not openly degraded according to the way they look has also been a contributing factor. Baggy clothes, a mixing of cultures and styles have distanced people from previously valued norms. The most alarming part of the problem is that there is a significant increase in child obesity.

As parents become busier with their careers and developing businesses, children often resort to eating foods that are high in cholesterol, greater amounts of sugar, and refined carbohydrates. Fast food has had an enormous effect on the social life of children, and the cycle keeps being perpetuated. Children are at a much higher risk of obesity and heart strain, as their bodies are not as strong, and their metabolism is much weaker, compared to adults. Also, modern media and entertainment lead to the reinforcement of fast food culture.

Children are provided with vast entertainment means, from personal computers to laptops, play stations, portable devices, and even interactive consoles. Instead of playing soccer outside and going fishing, people can sit on a couch or stand in front of a TV and perform 2 to 3 moves in one spot.

The availability of fried foods in schools and the proximity of fast food restaurants allows for easy access. Even the prices are relatively low, as compared to restaurants and the service provided (Olfman 110). The easiness with which fast food and its consumption spreads, have led to a causal relationship between the food people consume and their daily lives.

The fact that there are several causes—social, cultural, and personal, leads to many negative effects in several aspects of life. People’s confidence and self-respect can exist independent of body image and future health risks. Even though obesity has become a concern, and people are becoming more aware of the problems and unnecessary risks, the culture leaves little choice.

The government and people of the United States must take steps and implement vital changes immediately, as it is better to prevent problems than to solve them. All the effects can be reversed if people make health their primary goal.

Works Cited

Fedorak, Shirley. Pop Culture: The Culture of Everyday Life , Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press, 2009. Print.

Olfman, Sharna. Childhood Lost: How American Culture is Failing Our Kids , Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005. Print.

Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal , New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012. Print.

Wilk, Richard. Fast Food/slow Food: The Cultural Economy of the Global Food System , Lanham, MD: Rowman Altamira, 2006. Print.

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Negative effects of fast foods

The popularity of fast foods is growing at an alarming rate in most parts of the world. Due to the fact that the current generation is always busy, most individuals consider fast food as a convenient food source. According to Elizabeth et al. (1024), fast foods can be prepared in a matter of minutes and are therefore very convenient for people who do not want to cook or those who tend to be busy. However, what people literally view as a fast way of getting food is killing more people than you think. Therefore, despite its many advantages, everyone should think twice before deciding to eat fast foods. Americans should stop consuming fast foods regularly because a fast food diet affects the health of an individual, affects the society through the spread of diseases and litters the environment.

Although a majority of people argue that fast foods save time, Dana (23) posits that fast food is bad and not good for our general health. According to Agnieszka et al. (317), a majority of junk foods such as instant noodles, hamburgers and confectionery are of very low nutritional value. Such foods are very high in sugar and in fact and are a major contributor to obesity. Obesity on the other hand greatly increases an individual’s susceptibility to other health problems such as heart disease and hypertension. Poti et al. (168) contend that this problem becomes even worse when they do not engage in physical activities. Powell, Lisa and Nguyen . (17) report that about 61% of Americans suffer from obesity and in most cases, this leads to problems such as heart disease and diabetes.

Furthermore, Ryu, Lee and Gon Kim (217) report that too much intake of soft drinks causes a decline in dental health. Therefore, such a diet of unhealthy fast foods should be prohibited and avoided at all costs. It is also vital to note that the cooking method of most fast foods involves frying. According to Dunford (1025), frying destroys most of the vital minerals needed for the human health. This, in turn, will lead to the development of nutrient deficiency diseases such as marasmus. The more we continue prioritizing fat foods, the more we risk suffering from nutrient deficiency diseases.

In addition, fast foods have been proven to trigger behavioural problems among children in school. With the increased popularity of fast foods, most school canteens readily sell such food to students. However, most of these foods such as soft drinks and instant noodles contain a lot of chemical additives to lengthen the shelf life. These additives have been found to be associated with behavioural complications such as poor concentration and hyperactivity among school children (Dunford, 1023).  It has been reported by Gunders (18) that when such foods are readily available in schools, students are unable to develop healthy because they lack vital nutrients and as such, there is a reduction in their learning potential. The results of a study by Jaworowska (310) on school children pointed out that students became calmer after lunch when fast foods were removed from the school canteen. Therefore, despite the fact that we try to come up with different ways of processing the foods we plant such as using potatoes to make chips, we should also look at effects of such fast foods on the society, on our children.

Besides that, the packaging used in fat foods are a major contributor to the litter problem. Fast foods tend to utilise a lot of packaging and the overuse of plastic ware, bags, straws and wrappers is the largest source of urban litter in the United States. Gunders (2) argues that fast foods make up to 50% of street litter. Litter is both a health and safety hazard, a lot of costs is used to clean the streets and this also portrays a bad image of the society (Jaworowska, 315). A majority of fast food vendors just sell take-away foods and do not provide feeding spaces. As such, individuals are forced to eat in the fields, vehicles or in classrooms. When they are done, they throw the packets at such places and this leads to building up of litter.

Additionally, the production of fast food poses harm to the environment. As per Powell, Lisa and Nguyen (19), the chemicals contained in fast foods greatly affect the environment.  A majority of fast foods involve meat products and most of these products are produced in factory farms which contribute to global warming. When the packages used in fast foods are disposed of in streets, they are easily carried by the wind into water bodies. As mentioned earlier, fast foods contain fertilizers, hormones and drugs which affect water quality. Ryu, Lee and Gon Kim (200) contend that these chemical additives contained in fast foods seep into the surrounding water killing sea animals and resulting in outbreaks of waterborne diseases.

The outbreak of water diseases that is brought about by fast foods greatly affects the society. This is because a lot of money is used to treat waterborne diseases such as cholera. Additionally, waterborne diseases contribute to a significant percentage of deaths in the United States (Powell, Lisa and Nguyen, 16). As if that is not enough, the accumulation of litter from packages of fast foods exposes the society to health related problems. The smell alone from the rotting rubbish pollutes the air and the presence of the rubbish exposes the society to diseases such as typhoid, amoeba and cholera (Ryu, Lee and Gon Kim, 204). According to Powell, Lisa and Nguyen (14), a large percentage of waste that goes into the municipal landfills is basically food. When such food decomposes in landfills it releases greenhouse gases which are very threatening to the environment.

Fast foods also lead to foodborne diseases. Dunford (1026) contends that what people don’t know is the conditions that the slaughtered animals were living in before they were killed. A study by Gunders (5) discovered that most fast foods such as chicken, beef and pork are prepared in very dirty environments. Chickens are being stuffed up together, the slaughter room for cows or pigs is full of bacteria which easily mixes with the meat and the resultant of this is foodborne diseases (Gunders, 23). In relation to this, a recent study pointed out that about 50% of soda fountains at fast food joints are made up of coliform bacteria, a bacteria that thrives in feces and 12% contained E.coli bacteria (Gunders, 25). The thought that even our soft drinks are infected by foodborne bacteria related to meat is really sickening. So, is it justified to buy fast foods because they are easily available and save cooking time? Of course not, because they are very detrimental to our health.

Having discussed the dangers that fast foods pose to the society, individuals and the planet, it is imperative to also look at the solutions to these problems. The environmental impact of fast foods can be solved by diverting the food wastes disposed of in landfills so as to reduce the resources involved in the production of food (Jaworowska, 316). Energy, fertilizers, water and pesticides are examples of such resources. It is everyone’s right to consume food, but if we waste any type of food, we are indirectly wasting the resources involved in its production. Greenhouse gases are also produced during growth, manufacturing, transportation and disposing of food. Therefore, reducing food wastage can help to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases. Jaworowska (311) also views that the logical solution to this will be to encourage the switch to compostable packaging by the fast food restaurants. Gunders (2) also proposes installation of Bio bins behind restaurants.

The health issues associated with fast foods can be controlled by generally encouraging the consumption of healthy foods (Poti et al., 167). It is not bad to consume fast foods once in a while but overconsumption can lead to significant health problems. Therefore, educating individuals on the vitality of eating healthy food is crucial to help them understand the harm they are doing to their body when consuming fast foods. The society, on the other hand, can help by appropriately disposing of wrappings of fast foods. This will enable the municipal officials to easily collect and recycle such wastes (Poti et al., 169).

In conclusion, food is good but we should consider the type of food that we eat and its effects to the environment that we live in. Fast foods affect individuals through the development of health complications. The society, on the other hand, is affected when there is a spread of foodborne and waterborne diseases. Fast foods also affect the environment through the poor disposal of wastes, accumulation of non-decomposable materials in landfills and release of harmful chemicals into the soil and water system. These problems can be solved through proper water disposal, reduction in the frequency of fast food consumption and educating the society and individuals on the consequences of fast foods.

• Dunford, Elizabeth, et al. “The variability of reported salt levels in fast foods across six countries: opportunities for salt reduction.”  Canadian Medical Association Journal  184.9 (2012): 1023-1028.
• Gunders, Dana. “Wasted: How America is losing up to 40 percent of its food from farm to fork to landfill.”  Natural Resources Defense Council  (2012): 1-26.
• Jaworowska, Agnieszka, et al. “Nutritional challenges and health implications of takeaway and fast food.”  Nutrition reviews  71.5 (2013): 310-318.
• Poti, Jennifer M., Kiyah J. Duffey, and Barry M. Popkin. “The association of fast food consumption with poor dietary outcomes and obesity among children: is it the fast food or the remainder of the diet?.”  The American journal of clinical nutrition  99.1 (2014): 162-171.
• Powell, Lisa M., and Binh T. Nguyen. “Fast-food and full-service restaurant consumption among children and adolescents: effect on energy, beverage, and nutrient intake.”  JAMA pediatrics  167.1 (2013): 14-20.
• Ryu, Kisang, Hye-Rin Lee, and Woo Gon Kim. “The influence of the quality of the physical environment, food, and service on restaurant image, customer perceived value, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions.” International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management  24.2 (2012): 200-223.

IELTS essay sample | Fast foods are bad. Do you agree?

by Manjusha Nambiar · Published March 22, 2016 · Updated April 23, 2024

Essay topic

The fast food industry has negative effects on our health, the environment and family eating habits. Do you agree or disagree?

Sample essay

Fast foods have invaded our kitchen and living room. They have changed our eating habits and made us prone to developing several health problems. I certainly agree with the argument that fast foods have a negative impact on our health and on the environment.

Most people who consume packaged food products are actually aware of their health consequences; still they can’t resist the temptation to eat them. There are several reasons to this. First, fast foods taste better. They use several ingredients that make us addicted to them. Second, fast foods are readily available. It takes hours to cook a meal. Today, most of us lead busy lives that leave us with little time to cook or clean. As a result, we are often compelled to buy fast foods even though we are aware of their health consequences.

Fast foods have a negative impact on the environment as well. The junk food industry uses plastic for packaging. The environmental consequences of plastic are well-known. Each year tons of plastic end up in landfills. It spoils the soil and clogs the drains.

Eating habits of families have also changed due to the adoption of fast foods. Parents and children munching on packaged foods sitting in front of a television is now a common sight. Gone are the days when families used to sit around a table to enjoy a meal.

To conclude, fast foods have a negative impact on almost all aspects of our life and the environment. In my opinion, it is high time we expelled them from our lives.

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The Negative Effects of Fast Food - Essay Example

In this assignment, I argue against the consumption of fast foods. The consumption of fast food should be visualized against their negative impacts on consumers. However, fast food restaurant operators are only interested in reaping profits from consumers although in-depth research has indicated negative health risks associated with fast foods. Nonetheless, finding from the various literature on dangers of excessive consumption of fast food have not prevented restaurant owners from operating a fast food business. Moreover, consumers have increased the frequency of visiting fast food outlets since there is a surge in number of fast food consumers nationwide across all ages.

Consumers and fast food operation owners disagree. They hold opinions that fast food has been in the limelight for decades and do not have grievous impacts on human health. Consequently, they argue fast foods have saved on time to ever increasing busy society and have solved the problems of fixing lunch or supper for the busy majority. Additionally, fast foods providers have ensured that there is readily available food on demand.

Critics believe that fast food consumption should be weighed against their negative impacts on human, animals, and environment. Their argument is based on the premise that frequent consumption of fast food is coupled with grievous negative health risks to human, animal cruelty, workers exploitation and cultural degradation claims resulting from people shifting their eating pattern away from the traditional foods. Moreover, concerns of millennial consumers having an ambivalent relationship with fast food have sired slow food and local food movements seeking to promote consumption of local cuisines. The proponents of the movements have launched education policy on the consideration of the environment, nutrition and benefits of local foods. Health havoc associated with fast food include cholesterol, uric acid, obesity, cardiovascular complications among others. CITATION Hou12 \l 1033 (Harcourt). Obesity accounts for 300,000 deaths in U.S. research into junks food restaurants have indicated a close relationship between some fast food restaurants located within the local area and obesity rates. According to the survey, by the food technology survey, 75% of Americans eating their foods at home. Nearly half of the meals being fast foods obtained from the restaurants, these foods have little enzyme producing vitamins and mineral but contains a high level of calories and cholesterol and contain food additives which result in obesity and cardiac complications CITATION Ash121 \l 1033 (Ashakiran & Deepthi R).

Supporters reject the idea. They claim that their main intervention is not necessary to enhance healthier foods but to address the consumers choice. For instance, the McDonald and Dunkin initiated inclusion of fruits although the studies reveal that there is no evidence supporting the calorie labeling. Consumers, however, regards full-service restaurants to be providing healthier, higher quality food which contains much more calories than the traditionally prepared foods. Moreover, the government is encouraging the business by providing support to the fast food businesses so that they can boost their operation and supply. They, however, argue that fast food industry is the largest employer of the minimum wage workers in the country the convenience of fast food to consumers who do not necessarily want to prepare meals at home. Consequently, restaurants are licenses to have calories counts where consumers can access the calories count save the family-owned restaurants. Finally, various fast food restaurants offer convenient choices fit for the customers with the low cost of fast food meals helping consumer stay within their budgets.

References BIBLIOGRAPHY \l 1033

Al-Saad, Eman. "Causes and Effects of Fast Food." International Journal of Scientific & Technology Research Volume 5, (April 26, 2016): 1-6.

Ashakiran & Deepthi R. "Fast Food and their Impact on Health." Journal of Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences University, Vol.1, No. 2, (July-Dec 2012): 8-9.

Ashakiran & Deepthi R. "Fast Foods and their Impacts on health: Department of Biochemistry, Department of Community Medicine, Sri Devaraj Urs Medicine. Kolar-563101 (Karnataka) India ." Journal of Krishna Institute of Medical sciences university, Vol 1 No.2 (July 2, 2012): 7-9.

Harcourt, Houghton Mifflin. Ast food nation: The dark side of the all-American meal. Retrieved from https://books.google.com.pk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=dU13X_AM_N8C&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=fast+food&ots=DnPkOK3oKl&sig=_XtoQIQbakFGInAVJF1I7CYuYYk#v=onepage&q=fast%20food&f=false (2012.): 1-48.

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• Positive and Negative Effects of Fast Food

Positive and Negative Effects of Fast Food - Essay Example

• Subject: Health Sciences & Medicine
• Type: Essay
• Level: High School
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FDA Warns Consumers to Avoid Certain Male Enhancement and Weight Loss Products Sold Through Amazon, eBay and Other Retailers Due to Hidden, Potentially Dangerous Drug Ingredients

FDA News Release

Agency Urges Online Marketplaces, Other Websites and Retailers to Stop Selling These Male Enhancement and Weight Loss Products to American Consumers

The FDA continues to find potentially dangerous products available for purchase. On Dec. 8, 2021, the FDA warned consumers not to purchase or use nine potentially dangerous sexual enhancement products available for purchase from Walmart.com. The FDA will continue to alert the public when products and companies place consumers’ health at risk.

On July 26, 2021, the FDA issued an untitled letter to notify Amazon about its distribution of sexual enhancement and weight loss products in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The FDA continues to find potentially dangerous products available for purchase and urges stores, websites, and online marketplaces, including Amazon, to stop selling these potentially dangerous products. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to use nearly 50 male enhancement or weight loss products that have been found to contain hidden ingredients and may pose a significant health risk. The FDA purchased these products on Amazon and eBay and agency testing found that the products contain active pharmaceutical ingredients not listed on their labels, including some with ingredients found in prescription drugs. These products may cause potentially serious side effects and may interact with medications or dietary supplements a consumer is taking. 

Despite FDA consumer warnings about similar products over the past decade, the agency continues to find potentially dangerous products available for purchase on the internet, including from online marketplaces like Amazon and eBay, as well as in retail stores. The agency urges consumers to beware of purchasing or taking these products.

“Protecting the health and safety of Americans is the FDA’s highest priority, and we will remain vigilant and communicate about products and companies that place U.S. consumers at risk,” said Donald D. Ashley, J.D., director of the Office of Compliance in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “While the FDA has engaged in discussions with online marketplaces like Amazon and eBay regarding these issues in the past, we believe they can do more to protect consumers from these fraudulent and potentially dangerous products. We continue to urge stores, websites and online marketplaces, like Amazon and eBay, to take appropriate steps to protect the American public by not selling or facilitating the sale of illegal FDA-regulated products.”

All 26 of the products the FDA purchased on Amazon and 20 of 25 products, or 80 percent, purchased on eBay contained undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients. The FDA’s laboratory testing found the products contained various undeclared active ingredients, including sildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil, sibutramine, desmethylsibutramine, phenolphthalein and/or fluoxetine. Many of these are active ingredients for use in FDA-approved prescription drugs, which are restricted to use under the supervision of a licensed health care professional.

Many of the products the agency purchased from Amazon and eBay have names that are the same as, or similar to, tainted products that have been the subject of previous FDA consumer warnings . Several of the Amazon products are designated as an “Amazon Choice” or “#1 Best Seller.” Products with undeclared drug ingredients violate federal law. In general, these products are unapproved new drugs and/or adulterated dietary supplements. In addition, they are misbranded because their labels do not accurately reflect their ingredients. 

The FDA’s tainted products database can help consumers identify nearly 1,000 of these potentially dangerous products. However, the agency is unable to test and identify all products that have potentially harmful hidden ingredients. Even if a product is not included in the list, consumers should be cautious about using certain products, especially those promoted for sexual enhancement, weight loss, bodybuilding, sleep aids or pain relief. Consumers should also be on alert for products that offer immediate or quick results and that sound too good to be true. The FDA is committed to protecting consumers by identifying and removing these potentially dangerous products from the market. 

Consumers using or considering using any over-the-counter product marketed for sexual enhancement, weight loss or bodybuilding, or any product marketed as a dietary supplement for pain relief, should talk to a health care professional first, as some ingredients may interact with medications or dietary supplements. Additionally, consumers should search for product information from sources other than sellers and ask a doctor for help distinguishing between reliable and questionable information. 

The FDA encourages consumers and health care professionals to report any adverse events to the agency’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program so the agency can take action to protect the public from any unsafe products. The FDA is also committed to protecting consumers from the risks of buying medicines online and helping them be more aware of how to buy online safely.

The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products. 

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Home — Essay Samples — Nursing & Health — Fast Food — Fast Food And Its Impact On Our Body

Fast Food and Its Impact on Our Body

• Categories: Fast Food Junk Food Obesity

About this sample

Words: 1034 |

Published: Jan 28, 2021

Words: 1034 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

Works Cited

• Malik, V. S., Pan, A., Willett, W. C., & Hu, F. B. (2013). Sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain in children and adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 98(4), 1084-1102. doi:10.3945/ajcn.113.058362
• Ludwig, D. S., Peterson, K. E., & Gortmaker, S. L. (2001). Relation between consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks and childhood obesity: A prospective, observational analysis. The Lancet, 357(9255), 505-508. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(00)04041-1
• O'Connor, A. (2011, July 19). Fast food linked to child asthma and eczema, study finds. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/20/health/20fastfood.html
• Nguyen, S. P., Ding, D., & Mihrshahi, S. (2018). Fruit and vegetable consumption and psychological distress: Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses based on a large Australian sample. BMJ Open, 8(3), e018848. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018848
• Black, J. L., Macinko, J., Dixon, L. B., & Fryer Jr, G. E. (2017). Neighborhoods and obesity in New York City. Health & Place, 46, 156-164. doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2017.05.007
• World Health Organization. (2013). Global action plan for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases 2013-2020. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020). Childhood obesity causes & consequences. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/childhood/causes.html
• Rundle, A. G., Neckerman, K. M., Freeman, L., Lovasi, G. S., Purciel, M., Quinn, J.,... Weiss, C. (2009). Neighborhood food environment and walkability predict obesity in New York City. Environmental Health Perspectives, 117(3), 442-447. doi:10.1289/ehp.11590
• McWilliams, J. M., Hsu, J., & Newhouse, J. P. (2007). New risk-adjustment system was associated with reduced favorable selection in Medicare Advantage. Health Affairs, 26(6), 1693-1702. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.26.6.1693
• Drewnowski, A., & Specter, S. E. (2004). Poverty and obesity: The role of energy density and energy costs. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 79(1), 6-16. doi:10.1093/ajcn/79.1.6

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COVID-19: Long-term effects

Some people continue to experience health problems long after having COVID-19. Understand the possible symptoms and risk factors for post-COVID-19 syndrome.

Most people who get coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) recover within a few weeks. But some people — even those who had mild versions of the disease — might have symptoms that last a long time afterward. These ongoing health problems are sometimes called post- COVID-19 syndrome, post- COVID conditions, long COVID-19 , long-haul COVID-19 , and post acute sequelae of SARS COV-2 infection (PASC).

What is post-COVID-19 syndrome and how common is it?

Post- COVID-19 syndrome involves a variety of new, returning or ongoing symptoms that people experience more than four weeks after getting COVID-19 . In some people, post- COVID-19 syndrome lasts months or years or causes disability.

Research suggests that between one month and one year after having COVID-19 , 1 in 5 people ages 18 to 64 has at least one medical condition that might be due to COVID-19 . Among people age 65 and older, 1 in 4 has at least one medical condition that might be due to COVID-19 .

What are the symptoms of post-COVID-19 syndrome?

The most commonly reported symptoms of post- COVID-19 syndrome include:

• Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental effort
• Lung (respiratory) symptoms, including difficulty breathing or shortness of breath and cough

Other possible symptoms include:

• Neurological symptoms or mental health conditions, including difficulty thinking or concentrating, headache, sleep problems, dizziness when you stand, pins-and-needles feeling, loss of smell or taste, and depression or anxiety
• Joint or muscle pain
• Heart symptoms or conditions, including chest pain and fast or pounding heartbeat
• Digestive symptoms, including diarrhea and stomach pain
• Blood clots and blood vessel (vascular) issues, including a blood clot that travels to the lungs from deep veins in the legs and blocks blood flow to the lungs (pulmonary embolism)
• Other symptoms, such as a rash and changes in the menstrual cycle

Keep in mind that it can be hard to tell if you are having symptoms due to COVID-19 or another cause, such as a preexisting medical condition.

It's also not clear if post- COVID-19 syndrome is new and unique to COVID-19 . Some symptoms are similar to those caused by chronic fatigue syndrome and other chronic illnesses that develop after infections. Chronic fatigue syndrome involves extreme fatigue that worsens with physical or mental activity, but doesn't improve with rest.

Why does COVID-19 cause ongoing health problems?

Organ damage could play a role. People who had severe illness with COVID-19 might experience organ damage affecting the heart, kidneys, skin and brain. Inflammation and problems with the immune system can also happen. It isn't clear how long these effects might last. The effects also could lead to the development of new conditions, such as diabetes or a heart or nervous system condition.

The experience of having severe COVID-19 might be another factor. People with severe symptoms of COVID-19 often need to be treated in a hospital intensive care unit. This can result in extreme weakness and post-traumatic stress disorder, a mental health condition triggered by a terrifying event.

What are the risk factors for post-COVID-19 syndrome?

You might be more likely to have post- COVID-19 syndrome if:

• You had severe illness with COVID-19 , especially if you were hospitalized or needed intensive care.
• You had certain medical conditions before getting the COVID-19 virus.
• You had a condition affecting your organs and tissues (multisystem inflammatory syndrome) while sick with COVID-19 or afterward.

Post- COVID-19 syndrome also appears to be more common in adults than in children and teens. However, anyone who gets COVID-19 can have long-term effects, including people with no symptoms or mild illness with COVID-19 .

What should you do if you have post-COVID-19 syndrome symptoms?

If you're having symptoms of post- COVID-19 syndrome, talk to your health care provider. To prepare for your appointment, write down:

• When your symptoms started
• What makes your symptoms worse
• How often you experience symptoms
• How your symptoms affect your activities

Your health care provider might do lab tests, such as a complete blood count or liver function test. You might have other tests or procedures, such as chest X-rays, based on your symptoms. The information you provide and any test results will help your health care provider come up with a treatment plan.

In addition, you might benefit from connecting with others in a support group and sharing resources.

• Long COVID or post-COVID conditions. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects.html. Accessed May 6, 2022.
• Post-COVID conditions: Overview for healthcare providers. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/clinical-care/post-covid-conditions.html. Accessed May 6, 2022.
• Mikkelsen ME, et al. COVID-19: Evaluation and management of adults following acute viral illness. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/search. Accessed May 6, 2022.
• Saeed S, et al. Coronavirus disease 2019 and cardiovascular complications: Focused clinical review. Journal of Hypertension. 2021; doi:10.1097/HJH.0000000000002819.
• AskMayoExpert. Post-COVID-19 syndrome. Mayo Clinic; 2022.
• Multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/mis/index.html. Accessed May 24, 2022.
• Patient tips: Healthcare provider appointments for post-COVID conditions. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/post-covid-appointment/index.html. Accessed May 24, 2022.
• Bull-Otterson L, et al. Post-COVID conditions among adult COVID-19 survivors aged 18-64 and ≥ 65 years — United States, March 2020 — November 2021. MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 2022; doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7121e1.

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The state of AI in early 2024: Gen AI adoption spikes and starts to generate value

If 2023 was the year the world discovered generative AI (gen AI) , 2024 is the year organizations truly began using—and deriving business value from—this new technology. In the latest McKinsey Global Survey  on AI, 65 percent of respondents report that their organizations are regularly using gen AI, nearly double the percentage from our previous survey just ten months ago. Respondents’ expectations for gen AI’s impact remain as high as they were last year , with three-quarters predicting that gen AI will lead to significant or disruptive change in their industries in the years ahead.

About the authors

This article is a collaborative effort by Alex Singla , Alexander Sukharevsky , Lareina Yee , and Michael Chui , with Bryce Hall , representing views from QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey, and McKinsey Digital.

Organizations are already seeing material benefits from gen AI use, reporting both cost decreases and revenue jumps in the business units deploying the technology. The survey also provides insights into the kinds of risks presented by gen AI—most notably, inaccuracy—as well as the emerging practices of top performers to mitigate those challenges and capture value.

AI adoption surges

Interest in generative AI has also brightened the spotlight on a broader set of AI capabilities. For the past six years, AI adoption by respondents’ organizations has hovered at about 50 percent. This year, the survey finds that adoption has jumped to 72 percent (Exhibit 1). And the interest is truly global in scope. Our 2023 survey found that AI adoption did not reach 66 percent in any region; however, this year more than two-thirds of respondents in nearly every region say their organizations are using AI. 1 Organizations based in Central and South America are the exception, with 58 percent of respondents working for organizations based in Central and South America reporting AI adoption. Looking by industry, the biggest increase in adoption can be found in professional services. 2 Includes respondents working for organizations focused on human resources, legal services, management consulting, market research, R&D, tax preparation, and training.

Also, responses suggest that companies are now using AI in more parts of the business. Half of respondents say their organizations have adopted AI in two or more business functions, up from less than a third of respondents in 2023 (Exhibit 2).

Gen AI adoption is most common in the functions where it can create the most value

Most respondents now report that their organizations—and they as individuals—are using gen AI. Sixty-five percent of respondents say their organizations are regularly using gen AI in at least one business function, up from one-third last year. The average organization using gen AI is doing so in two functions, most often in marketing and sales and in product and service development—two functions in which previous research  determined that gen AI adoption could generate the most value 3 “ The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier ,” McKinsey, June 14, 2023. —as well as in IT (Exhibit 3). The biggest increase from 2023 is found in marketing and sales, where reported adoption has more than doubled. Yet across functions, only two use cases, both within marketing and sales, are reported by 15 percent or more of respondents.

Gen AI also is weaving its way into respondents’ personal lives. Compared with 2023, respondents are much more likely to be using gen AI at work and even more likely to be using gen AI both at work and in their personal lives (Exhibit 4). The survey finds upticks in gen AI use across all regions, with the largest increases in Asia–Pacific and Greater China. Respondents at the highest seniority levels, meanwhile, show larger jumps in the use of gen Al tools for work and outside of work compared with their midlevel-management peers. Looking at specific industries, respondents working in energy and materials and in professional services report the largest increase in gen AI use.

Investments in gen AI and analytical AI are beginning to create value

The latest survey also shows how different industries are budgeting for gen AI. Responses suggest that, in many industries, organizations are about equally as likely to be investing more than 5 percent of their digital budgets in gen AI as they are in nongenerative, analytical-AI solutions (Exhibit 5). Yet in most industries, larger shares of respondents report that their organizations spend more than 20 percent on analytical AI than on gen AI. Looking ahead, most respondents—67 percent—expect their organizations to invest more in AI over the next three years.

Where are those investments paying off? For the first time, our latest survey explored the value created by gen AI use by business function. The function in which the largest share of respondents report seeing cost decreases is human resources. Respondents most commonly report meaningful revenue increases (of more than 5 percent) in supply chain and inventory management (Exhibit 6). For analytical AI, respondents most often report seeing cost benefits in service operations—in line with what we found last year —as well as meaningful revenue increases from AI use in marketing and sales.

Inaccuracy: The most recognized and experienced risk of gen AI use

As businesses begin to see the benefits of gen AI, they’re also recognizing the diverse risks associated with the technology. These can range from data management risks such as data privacy, bias, or intellectual property (IP) infringement to model management risks, which tend to focus on inaccurate output or lack of explainability. A third big risk category is security and incorrect use.

Respondents to the latest survey are more likely than they were last year to say their organizations consider inaccuracy and IP infringement to be relevant to their use of gen AI, and about half continue to view cybersecurity as a risk (Exhibit 7).

Conversely, respondents are less likely than they were last year to say their organizations consider workforce and labor displacement to be relevant risks and are not increasing efforts to mitigate them.

In fact, inaccuracy— which can affect use cases across the gen AI value chain , ranging from customer journeys and summarization to coding and creative content—is the only risk that respondents are significantly more likely than last year to say their organizations are actively working to mitigate.

Some organizations have already experienced negative consequences from the use of gen AI, with 44 percent of respondents saying their organizations have experienced at least one consequence (Exhibit 8). Respondents most often report inaccuracy as a risk that has affected their organizations, followed by cybersecurity and explainability.

Our previous research has found that there are several elements of governance that can help in scaling gen AI use responsibly, yet few respondents report having these risk-related practices in place. 4 “ Implementing generative AI with speed and safety ,” McKinsey Quarterly , March 13, 2024. For example, just 18 percent say their organizations have an enterprise-wide council or board with the authority to make decisions involving responsible AI governance, and only one-third say gen AI risk awareness and risk mitigation controls are required skill sets for technical talent.

Bringing gen AI capabilities to bear

The latest survey also sought to understand how, and how quickly, organizations are deploying these new gen AI tools. We have found three archetypes for implementing gen AI solutions : takers use off-the-shelf, publicly available solutions; shapers customize those tools with proprietary data and systems; and makers develop their own foundation models from scratch. 5 “ Technology’s generational moment with generative AI: A CIO and CTO guide ,” McKinsey, July 11, 2023. Across most industries, the survey results suggest that organizations are finding off-the-shelf offerings applicable to their business needs—though many are pursuing opportunities to customize models or even develop their own (Exhibit 9). About half of reported gen AI uses within respondents’ business functions are utilizing off-the-shelf, publicly available models or tools, with little or no customization. Respondents in energy and materials, technology, and media and telecommunications are more likely to report significant customization or tuning of publicly available models or developing their own proprietary models to address specific business needs.

Respondents most often report that their organizations required one to four months from the start of a project to put gen AI into production, though the time it takes varies by business function (Exhibit 10). It also depends upon the approach for acquiring those capabilities. Not surprisingly, reported uses of highly customized or proprietary models are 1.5 times more likely than off-the-shelf, publicly available models to take five months or more to implement.

Gen AI high performers are excelling despite facing challenges

Gen AI is a new technology, and organizations are still early in the journey of pursuing its opportunities and scaling it across functions. So it’s little surprise that only a small subset of respondents (46 out of 876) report that a meaningful share of their organizations’ EBIT can be attributed to their deployment of gen AI. Still, these gen AI leaders are worth examining closely. These, after all, are the early movers, who already attribute more than 10 percent of their organizations’ EBIT to their use of gen AI. Forty-two percent of these high performers say more than 20 percent of their EBIT is attributable to their use of nongenerative, analytical AI, and they span industries and regions—though most are at organizations with less than $1 billion in annual revenue. The AI-related practices at these organizations can offer guidance to those looking to create value from gen AI adoption at their own organizations.

To start, gen AI high performers are using gen AI in more business functions—an average of three functions, while others average two. They, like other organizations, are most likely to use gen AI in marketing and sales and product or service development, but they’re much more likely than others to use gen AI solutions in risk, legal, and compliance; in strategy and corporate finance; and in supply chain and inventory management. They’re more than three times as likely as others to be using gen AI in activities ranging from processing of accounting documents and risk assessment to R&D testing and pricing and promotions. While, overall, about half of reported gen AI applications within business functions are utilizing publicly available models or tools, gen AI high performers are less likely to use those off-the-shelf options than to either implement significantly customized versions of those tools or to develop their own proprietary foundation models.

What else are these high performers doing differently? For one thing, they are paying more attention to gen-AI-related risks. Perhaps because they are further along on their journeys, they are more likely than others to say their organizations have experienced every negative consequence from gen AI we asked about, from cybersecurity and personal privacy to explainability and IP infringement. Given that, they are more likely than others to report that their organizations consider those risks, as well as regulatory compliance, environmental impacts, and political stability, to be relevant to their gen AI use, and they say they take steps to mitigate more risks than others do.

Gen AI high performers are also much more likely to say their organizations follow a set of risk-related best practices (Exhibit 11). For example, they are nearly twice as likely as others to involve the legal function and embed risk reviews early on in the development of gen AI solutions—that is, to “ shift left .” They’re also much more likely than others to employ a wide range of other best practices, from strategy-related practices to those related to scaling.

In addition to experiencing the risks of gen AI adoption, high performers have encountered other challenges that can serve as warnings to others (Exhibit 12). Seventy percent say they have experienced difficulties with data, including defining processes for data governance, developing the ability to quickly integrate data into AI models, and an insufficient amount of training data, highlighting the essential role that data play in capturing value. High performers are also more likely than others to report experiencing challenges with their operating models, such as implementing agile ways of working and effective sprint performance management.

About the research

The online survey was in the field from February 22 to March 5, 2024, and garnered responses from 1,363 participants representing the full range of regions, industries, company sizes, functional specialties, and tenures. Of those respondents, 981 said their organizations had adopted AI in at least one business function, and 878 said their organizations were regularly using gen AI in at least one function. To adjust for differences in response rates, the data are weighted by the contribution of each respondent’s nation to global GDP.

Alex Singla and Alexander Sukharevsky  are global coleaders of QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey, and senior partners in McKinsey’s Chicago and London offices, respectively; Lareina Yee  is a senior partner in the Bay Area office, where Michael Chui , a McKinsey Global Institute partner, is a partner; and Bryce Hall  is an associate partner in the Washington, DC, office.

They wish to thank Kaitlin Noe, Larry Kanter, Mallika Jhamb, and Shinjini Srivastava for their contributions to this work.

This article was edited by Heather Hanselman, a senior editor in McKinsey’s Atlanta office.

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