Last year, I was living away from my family and that’s the reason I frequently ate junk food. There were times I tried to cook for myself, but it was too hard to come back from a long day at work and start the tedious cooking process. It was too hectic, so I always ended up ordering a pizza or a burger.
A few months ago, I moved back home and started eating home-cooked meals that my father lovingly prepared for all of us. I loved it. I suddenly felt like junk food was such a waste of money, and it also messed up so much of my diet and my body.
To finally come out of this phase, I decided to change my lifestyle: I started with more home-cooked meals and a gym membership. And in my quest to be healthier, I challenged myself to give up eating junk food for one whole month. Trust me, the thought of it was scary!
That meant no chips, no coke, no burgers or pizzas. Nothing!
And guess what? I actually managed to do it! And there’s so much that I learned about my body and food in that one month. One of the lessons was that we actually DON’T need junk food in our life. We are so much better without it.
So, it was on a Sunday when I had finished my month of not eating junk food and then I realised that I deserved a treat after eating healthy and working out for an entire month. With this purpose of celebrating in mind, I got the whole deal – a burger and a box of fries. I couldn’t contain my happiness at this sight.
I did feel good; it was all I’d hoped for. The crispy fries and the cheesy chicken burger and coke were HEAVEN to me but then I went back home and I felt bloated.
I never imagined I would be one of those people who would write something bad about burger and fries, but I definitely regretted eating it after four weeks of a healthier lifestyle. I didn’t feel good about myself for a while.
These meals that we started to depend on harm our body in different ways. From cholesterol to weight problems, they affect us with each bite. Here are some of the things I found online on further research:
The long-term effects of eating junk food
According to a study on fast food and heart health, someone who eats junk food more than once a week has a higher risk of obesity. Eating fast food more than twice a week has been associated with a higher risk of metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of conditions including high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol and hypertension, leading to heart diseases and strokes.
Short-term effects
It will change your metabolism, reduce the ability of your muscles and also lead to poor digestion. Eating fast food also leads to a few other things like depression, dental distress, shortness of breath and bloating and puffiness.
Trust me, the list of disadvantages of eating junk food goes on, but does that mean I will stop eating junk food? Maybe not entirely. Experts do believe that this way of eating can also be balanced. Which means, you can either tone it down a little and substitute it with healthier options, or always try to opt for something that won’t ruin your health. Like maybe go for water instead of an aerated drink when you’re eating a burger. Or, order a salad along with your burger. There’s no way to stop eating junk food, but we sure can eliminate it from our daily lives.
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