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We all know that fast food is generally high in fat, sodium, calories and sometimes sugar. But do you really know how they stack up against alternatives?
We weigh up the options for those times when you just really, really want a junk food fix... Burger King The worst offenders here are the popular Double Whopper and the BK Hawaiian Chicken. A BK Hawaiian Chicken contains has a very high fat content and the Double Whopper is even worse, it contains nearly half the daily energy needs for a women, and has a fat equivalent of 11 teaspoons of fat. The best choices at Burger King are the Tender Grill burger and the Hamburger.  Worst choicesBK Hawaiian Chicken 3351 kj / 797 calories 48g fat -nearly 10 teaspoons of fat 1805mg sodium BK Double Whopper 3768kj/ 897 calories 54g fat – 11 teaspoons of fat 1088mg sodium  Best choicesTender Grill 1642 kj/ 390 calories 6 g fat - just over 1 teaspoon of fat 1456mg sodium
Hamburger 1254 kj/298 calories 12g fat – equal to 3 teaspoons of fat 541mg sodium KFC The two worst offenders at KFC are the Original Recipe Chicken and the Zinger BBQ Bacon and Cheese Burger. It would be a loooong walk on the treadmill to burn off these two. The good news is KFC does have a better option – the Chicken Salad and the Snack Burger.
 Worst choicesZinger BBQ Bacon & Cheese Burger 2416kj/ 575calories 28g fat – around 6 teaspoons fat 1595 mg sodium Two pieces of Original Recipe Chicken 2630kj / 626 calories 40.6g fat – around 8 teaspoons fat 2316 mg sodium Be st choices Snack Burger 1523 kj / 362 calories 9.7 g fat – around two teaspoons of fat 1091 mg sodium Chicken Fillet Garden Salad 1279 kj / 304 calories 15.4g fat – around 3 teaspoons of fat 1053 mg sodium McDonalds MCDonalds have made a number of changes to their menu in recent years, and from the traditional fast foods featured in this article is the easiest to pick a healthier choice from. The worst offenders at McDonalds are The Boss burger and the Quarter Pounder. With healthy choices, there is more choice – the lighter choices menu offers low fat options. For this article, I’ve picked two options – the Seared Chicken Wrap and the Chicken Salad.  Worst choicesThe Quarter Pounder 2220 kj / 534 calories 28.4g fat – around 6 teaspoons fat 1260mg sodium The Boss 3220 kj / 769 calories 46g fat – around 9.5 teaspoons fat 1350mg sodium Best choices Seared Classic Chicken Wrap 1350kj / 324 calories 6.7g fat – around 1.5 teaspoons fat 775mg sodium Chicken Salad 622kj /149 calories 2.3g fat – about half a teaspoon of fat 418 mg sodium
So, as you can see now, the good news is there are healthier options when it comes to fast food, just be sure to skip the fries and sugary drinks when you order too! Nicola, Nutritionist |
