If you worry that you eat too much fast food, and not enough healthy foods, we have good news: according to our latest poll results, our readers eat much less fast food than the average American.
The results are impressive, because a recent Gallup poll found that eight in 10 Americans eat fast food at least once a month, while almost 30% eat fast food once a week—a big difference compared to our readers, of which only 11% eat fast food once a week. The good news: the Gallup poll found that Americans are eating less fast food than previously reported in their 2006 poll.
The great news? Our readers seem to be faring better and eating less fast food than the average American altogether. So what’s your secret?
One of the keys to staying on a healthy eating plan is to constantly be aware of what’s actually healthy and what’s not. And that’s one of the things we do most here at FoodsForBetterHealth.com. We know that health education can be confusing (just scrolling through the health section of any leading news web site is confusing for me, and I do this all day!) and we pride ourselves on weeding out the relevant and science-backed information from the health “facts” that are just mere hype.
But knowing what’s good for you isn’t always enough. In fact, the Gallup poll also found that about 75% of people believe that fast food is “not too good” or “not good at all.” So then why do we do it? There are many reasons why we’re drawn to eating fast food. Convenience is a huge factor, especially in our fast-paced society, while cost is another (although fast food is definitely not always cheaper than homemade, healthy foods).
While it may take more time and effort to prepare healthy foods, it will definitely pay off in the long run. Eating healthy foods and having an active lifestyle is associated with a lower risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Those are definitely some benefits we can get on board with!
Source:
Dugan, A., “Fast food still major part of U.S. diet,” Gallup web site, August 6, 2013; http://www.gallup.com/poll/163868/fast-food-major-part-diet.aspx, last accessed March 24, 2014.
