For whom is fast food harmful?

Western-style fast food provides meat, especially processed meat, calories, salt, refined carbohydrates, and fat, especially saturated fat and trans fatty acids, in large and ever-increasing quantities. Having conquered the West, it has now extended its empire to the Asian countries. World governments, unmindful of the consequences and eager for economic growth, have facilitated the phenomenon in a way very similar to their approach toward tobacco products. People in developing countries, associating Western dietary patterns with prosperity and also unmindful of the consequences, have abandoned their traditional diets.

The Singapore Chinese Health Study has studied over 50,000 Singaporeans of Chinese descent. In a recent issue of the journal Circulation (2012:126:182-188), the study presented its findings with regard to the effect of fast food intake on the risk of developing diabetes and dying of coronary heart disease. The researchers questioned people about their intake of Western-style fast food items, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, French fries, pizza, deep-fried chicken, and hot dogs, as well as other elements of their diet. They found that people who consumed fast food items such as these twice a week or more had a significantly increased risk of developing diabetes and of dying of coronary heart disease as compared with those individuals who did not consume such foods. As expected, those who consumed more fast food took in many more calories each day than those who refrained from such food. But even when adjustments were made for caloric intake and body mass index (a measure related to weight), the association between fast food intake and risk of diabetes and heart disease remained.