How is Fast Food Made to be Addicting?

Although many of us are aware of how unhealthy most commercial fast food is, why do we keep buying it? Why is the fast food industry valued at over 850 billion dollars? There’s a variety of reasons, but here are a few of the main ones.

Our brains like fast food:

• When we do something that the brain likes, it wants us to repeat that action.
• Sugar is known to activate dopamine receptors
  • a chemical that makes you happy
• Sugar has similar properties to some addictive drugs that also stimulate dopamine.
• In fast food, the combination of sugar, salt, fats, and processed ingredients make it hard to stop eating
  • similar to a lower level scale of addiction.

Questionable advertisements:

• Fast food companies advertise their food to be healthier than it actually is
• Restaurants like Mcdonald’s, Burger King, and Chipotle have all underreported the amount of calories in their products
• When people think that fast food is healthy, they are inclined to eat it more often
• In reality, it’s better to consume most fast food in moderation

Deals and combos that get you to buy more:

• Every fast food restaurant has different meal combos, deals, and coupons
• These deals encourage you to buy more food
• Ex. a buy two get one free or a meal kit that comes with extra products
• These deals are very tempting because you are getting more value out of your meal
• But it’s also important to ask yourself if you’re walking away from the fast food restaurant with much more than you intended to buy

Cheap and convenient:

• Fast food is cheap and convenient
• Most people don’t have enough time to go to a sit down restaurant or make food for themselves
• This causes many to turn to fast food drive thru restaurants
• When buying fast food is convenient, it’s very easy for it to become a habit.

You know know how fast food is addicting.  Take the will power to standup for your own health.