Most Americans know that fast food isn’t good for them, It is high in calories, fat, salt, and sugar. Yet fast-food restaurants are part of American life. After World War II, higher salaries and productivity, together with technological developments and increased consumerism, made the fast-food restaurants popular. It represented a modern lifestyle, and is still a popular place for teenagers to get together with friends. The food is cheap, and many say they love the taste.

The advertising is often aimed at children, with offers of entertainment and gifts. Another factor in fast-food sales – not only in the US, but all over the world – is our increasingly busy lifestyles. In the past, families ate a home-cooked meal together at dinner time. These days, meals can be eaten at any hour of the day, and people rely on easy, instant food – not always nutritious – that is available ‘24/7’. America invented the ‘TV dinner’, and it is something most people around the world now enjoy.

The truth is that it’s extremely difficult to follow a healthy diet when you’re eating regularly at fast food restaurants. Fast food is typically loaded with calories, sodium, and unhealthy fat—often enough in one meal for an entire day. It also tends to be low in nutrients and almost totally lacking in fruit, vegetables, and fiber. That doesn’t mean you have to avoid fast food entirely.