Fast Food Consumption in Children: A Review

Abstract

Fast food refers to food that can be served ready to eat fast. Fast food and junk food are often used interchangeably. Energy dense food with high sugar/fat/salt content and low nutrient value in terms of protein, fiber, vitamin and mineral content is termed junk food. Many of our children are fond of such readymade food. Sponsorship of sports or cultural competitions with attractive gifts is the main way of promotion of first food sale. Nuclear families, working mother, socioeconomic status, close proximity of fast food shop, food test and quick service in the shop are important contributing factors of fast food consumption. This kind of food is responsible for obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, heart disease and
diabetes. Easy availability of healthy food with reasonable prices along with its campaign, school midday-food programme and health education can improve dietary habits of children. Implementation of laws for regulation of marketing and selling of fast food may be another step in controlling consumption of such food by our children.
Keywords: Fast foods, Junk foods, Children, Review.

Medical and Clinical Reviews 2015;1(1):1-4

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Medical & Clinical Reviews
2015
Vol. 1 No. 1:1
1
© Copyright iMedPub | This article is available in:http://medical-clinical-reviews.imedpub.com/archive.php
Jagadish C Das
Associate Professor, Department of
Neonatology, Chiagong Medical
College, Chiagong, Bangladesh.
Corresponding author: Jagadish C Das
Associate Professor, Department of
Neonatology, Chittagong Medical College,
Chittagong, Bangladesh.
 jagadishcdas@yahoo.com
Tel: 0088-01711077900
Introducon
Food is essenal for growth and development of a child. A child
cannot live without food. ‘Good food means the right kind of food
for good health; it is nutriou’s. It contains natural substances
that body needs to grow properly and stay healthy. We must
choose the right food in daily diet for good health of our child [1].
Socioeconomic condions and cultural norms of our community
have been changing. Food habits of our children are also changing
facing such changes. Many of children are fond of readymade
outside food. Some guardians are even reluctant in changing
food habits of their children. They admit readymade outside food
for their babies even willingly. ‘Food that can be served ready to
eat fast’ refers to fast food. Fast foods and junk foods are oen
used interchangeably. Most junk foods are fast foods as they are
prepared and served fast. But not all fast foods are junk foods,
especially when they are prepared with nutrious contents [2].
Fast food culture is an emerging trend among children. ‘Energy
dense food with high sugar/ fat/ salt content and low nutrient
value in terms of protein, ber, vitamin and mineral content is
termed junk food’[3].Easy availability, taste, parent’s occupaon
and markeng strategies make them popular among children.
One important aspect of fast food restaurant is that it is primed
to maximize the service speed and is standardized to minimize
waing me. So customers can save their me in taking their
food. Here, food menu is limited in number [3]. It has been seen
that on a typical day in United States, nearly 30% of 4-19 years
children consumes fast food[4].
Situaon in Bangladesh, parcularly in auent society is not
reverse. Approximately 56% of a private university students in
Dhaka goes to fast food restaurants at least once per week and 44
% goes regularly (≥ 2 mes/wk)[5]. In a country like Bangladesh,
paradoxically coexisted with malnutrion among children and
adolescents, mulple factors including rapid urbanizaon and
inappropriate dietary pracces, have aributed to an emerging
overweight and obesity problem among young children in
urban and especially among auent families[5]. Thinking of our
physicians is limited on such alarming food habit of children.
Moreover, fast food taking by our children is less addressed. The
review is wrien to orient our physicians parcularly pediatricians
regarding some fundamental aspects of such food culture which
may help in developing a prevenve strategy in reducing fast food
taking by our children.
Fast Food Promoon
In adolescents’ aged 12–18 years of US, there is a decrease in
percentage of energy intake from foods consumed at home,
Fast Food Consumpon in
Children: A Review
Abstract
Fast food refers to food that can be served ready to eat fast. Fast food and
junk food are oen used interchangeably. Energy dense food with high
sugar/fat/salt content and low nutrient value in terms of protein, ber,
vitamin and mineral content is termed junk food. Many of our children
are fond of such readymade food. Sponsorship of sports or cultural
compeons with aracve gis is the main way of promoon of rst
food sale. Nuclear families, working mother, socioeconomic status, close
proximity of fast food shop, food test and quick service in the shop are
important contribung factors of fast food consumpon. This kind of food
is responsible for obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, heart disease and
diabetes. Easy availability of healthy food with reasonable prices along with
its campaign, school midday-food programme and health educaon can
improve dietary habits of children. Implementaon of laws for regulaon
of markeng and selling of fast food may be another step in controlling
consumpon of such food by our children.
Keywords: Fast foods, Junk foods, Children, Review

2
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ARCHIVOS DE MEDICINA
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whereas the proporon of energy intake from restaurant food
and fast food increased over me [6]. Consumpon of fast food
promoted in various ways throughout the globe. Sponsorship of
sports or cultural compeons with aracve gis is the main
means of promoon of rst food sale. This oers discounts on
purchase of their fast food brand. Sports stars are oen involved in
adversement of fast food products. Adversements in television
with animaon and cartoon are another way of lunching rst food.
[7]. This acvity has an important role in promong unhealthy
dietary pracces with diets reach in fat, sodium or added sugar
among children [8]. Apart from adversing via television, other
media like posters, magazines, billboards, radio and cinemas
favor fast food markeng [9].
Factors Related to Fast Food Consumpon
Fast foods are taking popularity by nuclear families because
working parents have less me for meal preparaon by
themselves. Majority of working parents with school going
children are in stress. Children spend most of the me away from
home by aending tuion classes aer school hours. Children
take breakfast at home and fast food in school or outside school.
A posive correlaon of increased fast food consumpon and
increased body mass index was found among adolescents [10].
Socio economic status is an important factor related to fast food
consumpon. Children from high socio-economic status prefer
fast foods to tradional foods despite their beer nutrional
knowledge [11]. It has been seen that children who are overweight
are signicantly more likely to recognize fast food restaurant
logos than other food logos. Again, families' socio-demographic
characteriscs play a role in children's recognion of food logos
[12]. Factors related to fast food preference by Bangladeshi
university students are convenience, easy accessibility, taste, cost
and quick service in fast food shop. Most of the fast food users
take such kind of food though they known well about negave
eects on themselves associated with fast food consumpon [5].
Fast Foods and School
Scenario of food presentaon in school areas dier from region
to region. Junk foods are widely available by the sides of schools
of country like ours. Cafeterias at the schools are reluctant with
balanced nutrious diet; rather interested to oer cold drinks,
chips and many other foods of low nutrional value. Junk
foods in school cafeteria oen compete with nutrious home-
made school n. Banding of junk foods in school cafeteria is
a rare occurrence in this region. Mid-day meal program is not
introduced in private schools of our country but this program
has been introduced specially in government schools of many
countries. Healthy foods are oered to children through this
program [13]. In primary schools of many European countries,
commercial food acvies are restricted. Beverages may be
oered among secondary school students of these countries with
acve parcipaon of educators and parents [14].
Bangaladeshi Fast Foods and Junk Food
There are dierent types of fast foods and junk foods throughout
the country. These include barger, sandause, hotdog, chicken
hot, muon chop, beaf stak, roasted chicken, chicken kka, gril
chicken, role, paes, pakora, samosa, sngara, pizza, tandoor,
French fries, fuska, onthon, nodules, aloo kki, dal puri, chaat,
chole bhature, pav bhaji and dhokla. Fat and calorie content in
fast food depends on cooking process. Most of the fast foods are
prepared by deep frying in fats especially trans fat and saturated
fats [15]. Foods which are baked, roasted or cooked in tandoor
have lower fat content. Hydrogenated oil used in cooking is
rich in trans fats. Trans fat content in fast food is far higher than
western food. Trans fat content in bhatura, parantha and puris is
9.5%, 7.8% and 7.6%, respecvely as compared to 4.2% in regular
French fries [16].
Eects of Excess Fast Food Consumpon
Fast food consumpon is denitely harmful to child health.
Children who eat fast food have higher intake of energy, fat,
saturated fat, sodium, carbonated so drink, and lower intake
of vitamins A and C, milk, fruits and vegetables than those who
do not take fast food (P<001)[17]. Diet with high sugar, salt,
saturated fat and calorie is responsible for disabilies like obesity,
hypertension, dyslipidemia and impaired glucose tolerance [18].
There is posive correlaon (p=<0.001) between frequency of
consumpon of fast food and body mass index. An increased
odds of being obese (OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.3-3.9) among a private
university students of Dhaka taking fast foods regularly is also
observed. Subsequently, obesity related problems in terms
of morbidity and mortality is evident [5]. Fast food may be
associated with poor hygiene during preparaon, storage and
handling. It invites microbiological contaminaon and is a risk
factor of heart diseases even [19]. Energy content of such food
is much more than recommended allowance for children [5,20].
It leads to higher calories from total and saturated fat [21] where
micronutrient content is low [22]. Calcium and magnesium
depleted fast food are responsible for osteoporosis. Diets rich in
free sugars may lead to increased risk of dental caries also [3]. Very
oen fast food restaurants and habit of fast food consumpon
are becoming issue of cricism in the media of Bangladesh due
to adulteraon of food items with food colors, other hazardous
chemicals, microbial safety and hygiene of the restaurants [23].
The coloring agents in the foods are regarded as carcinogen [3].
Reducon of Fast Food Consumpon
Availability of healthy food along with its campaign and
surveillance on disease and associaon with dietary habits
improves healthy food intake. School based programs and health
educaon can also improve dietary habits of children [24]. Price
reducon is one of the most eecve strategies of healthy
foods purchasing [25]. Price reducon on low fat snacks and
placement of low fat label is associated with signicant increase
in their consumpon among adolescent populaon [26]. Time
has arrived when adversement of fast food and junk food in
mass media is to be controlled strictly. Healthy feeding should be
focused through televisions, radios, newspapers and school mid
day food programme [3]. Children should be encouraged to take
readily available and aordable home made nutrious foods.
Government has to take measures to reduce cost of food grains
in countries like ours. Implementaon of tax on readymade food
items might be appreciated. Disclosure of nutrional content in

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terms of calorie, added sugar, fat, minerals and protein in product
labels may be a forward step in this respect. Implementaon of
laws for regulaon of markeng and selling of fast food may
be another step in controlling consumpon of such food by
our children. [3] Recently added beauful chapters on food
and nutrion in dierent text books of school going children is
denitely a posive steps in controlling unhealthy fast food.
Such step also encourages our children and their parents to take
balanced healthy food.
Conclusions
Taking of fast food is a dietary habit of our present day children.
Consumpon of diet reach in sugar, saturated fat, salt and calorie
in children can lead to early development of health hazards.
There are various reasons for consumpon of such food by
children. Most of fast food users know well about negave eects
associated with fast food consumpon. However, they take fast
food without considering their health complicaons. The young
generaons are geng addicted to fast food which indicates a
serious public health problem. Prompt necessary acons should
be undertaken to tackle this health problem. Implementaon of
laws to regulate the markeng of fast foods may be an important
step in reducing fast food consumpon by children. Awareness
regarding healthy feeding may save children from harmful eects
of fast food in this area.

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