UK leads US as "fast food nation"

How will an increase in consumption of unhealthy fast food (along with other unhealthy lifestyle choices) affect future obesity rates, health risks and burden of disease in the UK?

Out of curiosity, what healthy foods do you imagine the British are replacing with evil "fast food"?

Fish and chips? Shepherd's pie? Egg, cheese and sausage sandwiches with Irn-Bru? Haggis?

People are now said to be getting fatter in most of the world,

The above statement is from your link. It is sad to hear! Not only because of the increases in diabetes, heart attacks etc. But I think even more importantly is what is going into the food such as preservatives and other dangerous chemicals.
It seems the only way you can make your food your medicine and your medicine your food is to make a determined effort to be careful about what you eat and be willing to retrain yourself regarding your diet. Thanks for the informative post Karen!
Dave Briggs :~)

Karen,
What has the U.S been doing right to curb bad eating habits & where did the U.K go wrong to result in this increase in bad eating habits?

It's not just a diet and health issue either. A higher rate of fast-food eating is also going to have an environmental cost in terms of increased plastic use as well as other trash, not to mention the costs to society of increased healthcare due to obesity-related illnesses. It's interesting to see the UK above the US in fast food consumption. I think that would surprise quite a few on both sides of the Atlantic.

Dear Dave, Sava and Ian,
Thank you for your comments.
To Sava: Great question. The answer is "I don't know". The article did not address the exact reasons for the difference between the UK and US populations. Although the UK came out on top, the statistics were actually quite close for the two nations.

Hi Karen,

Just read this article and found it interesting. However, from the comments of friends who have visited England and eaten the food there, it may not be all that surprising that its citizens would opt for fast food over the traditional fare.

Hey Karen,
I am not surprised about the UK eating so much fast food. One reason is likely, as John said, that some of the food choices in the UK are not that great, but another reason is that every street in UK cities in jam-packed with fast food restaurants (hmmm.....when you think of restaurants, do you think of fast food?).

What's up Karen!

I was just referred to your blog and love it already!

What this article doesn't mention are the socio-economic factors that play into these statistics. The reality of developed Westerrn nations (especially the US and UK) is that in many families both parents work and dont have time to cook meals for children or themselves. Or the middle aged single American is too busy with everything else and just wants a quick easy meal.

In our society that revolves around deadlines and the work clock people are always rushing around. Our culture promotes working hard to make a living for yourself (it is the American dream, after all). It isnt uncommon for lower income individuals to work multiple jobs or middle class families to participate in so many activities that fast-food is the only option. Fast food is the way to "stay on schedule" and naturally fits into our otherwise efficient lifestyles.

Additionally, children growing up accustomed to fast food incorporate it into their daily routines and psychologically dont think of it as abnormal or bad to eat fast food multiple times a week (or day).

Of course exercise plays a role as well and in the US and UK the culture of car ownership prevents many people from walking everywhere, as they do in other European and South American countries.

I would bet there are studies addressing how these socio-economic factors affect the obesity epidemic in America.

Unfortunately, this is a problem that is deeply rooted and very complex; a single approach to solving it will undoubtably fail. Once the economic cost of obesity sinks our health care system then maybe the govt will consider doing something concrete about it. In the meantime educating people about these issues is the best temporary fix in my opinion.

I live in Scotland. I would just like to note, the whole concept of "fast food" is probably even more deeply rooted over here than it is in the US; long before there was MacDonald's the UK had fish-and-chips, and there were chip shops on every corner. And it seems like "traditional food" in this country involves deep-fat-frying, well, everything.

You think I'm joking. Note, the chip shops around where I live (just south of Aberdeen) all sell deep-fried Mars bars, and every chip shop in Scotland as far as I can tell sells deep-fried pizza. (I don't know why, because it's gross beyond words. The crust soaks up fat and swells up like a sponge.) But people buy these things.

Up until recently, the only vegetables commonly available were the locally grown root veg -- turnips, tatties, and carrots. Peas were imported from England, and given coal tar flavouring because why would anyone want to eat unprocessed garden peas that still tasted like peas. But fruit? What kind of ponces ate fruit?

The real difference here is not so much the advent of the unhealthy diet (unhealthy diet being more traditional than just about anything else) as the fact that people here are no longer out running around in the cold all day every day doing hard physical labor, and burning it off.

When I first moved here, I remember having a conversation with some of my husband's friends, about the fact that they were going to kill themselves with this kind of diet. Their response was along the lines of, "this is what's wrong with Americans -- they treat death as if it were optional!"

Dear Luna_the_cat,
Thank you for sharing your personal experiences. It's always great to get the perspective of someone, such as yourself, who has experienced things first-hand.

Also, thank you John Shanks, Milo and Thomas for your comments.

Obesity costs the NHS of UK around £1 billion a year and a further £2.3 to £2.6 billion in indirect costs.

This is a serious health condition where excess body fat you carry will affect your well-being, and also a major public health concern due to rising rates among children and adults.