Digesting the junk food facts can take a strong stomach. Here are a few facts to chew on before your crack open another can of coke.

What’s in Some of that Junk Food?

• One teaspoon of sugar is extracted from a stalk of sugar-cane one metre in length!
• A can of cola contains 10 teaspoons of sugar.
• The metal in the can costs more than the ingredients (mainly water with additives, refined sugar and caffeine).
• A super-sized order of McDonald's fries contains 610 calories and 29 grams of fat.
• A king-sized order of Burger King's fries packs 590 calories and 30 grams of fat.
• Artificial ingredients can contain an alarming variety of chemicals. For instance, ‘artificial strawberry flavour’ can contain about 50 chemicals... and no strawberries at all!
• A king-sized Burger King meal, (Double Whopper with cheese, large fries and large drink) contains 1,800 calories (mostly derived from fat and refined sugar). To ‘burn’ these calories would take nearly 6 hours of cycling (at 20 miles per hour).

Junk Food Advertising

• The food industry spends over $33 billion per year in the US alone to advertise food products that could be classified as junk food.
• The majority of food advertising during children’s television programming is for sweetened cereals, soft drinks, candy, processed snacks and fast foods.
• The average American child sees around 20,000 ads a year for junk food.
• Over 90% of American children eat at McDonald’s at least once per month
• American teenagers drink an average of 760 can of soda pop per year (with boys drinking about 25% more than girls).
• The average American of any age drinks over 500 cans of soft drinks per year.
• Nearly 20% of children under 2 years of age are given soft drinks every day in America!
• The average person today consumes more sugar in two weeks than a person a century ago would have eaten in a whole year. That's a junk food fact!

Harmful Effects of Junk Food

• The regular consumption of junk food is the leading factor in obesity and excess weight.
• Obesity is second only to smoking as a cause of death in America.
• 46% of Canadian adults are either overweight or obese, with obesity in children increasing three-fold over the past 2 decades.
• Consumption of soft drinks containing sugar has been linked to weight gain and an increased risk for development of type 2 diabetes.
• Studies have revealed that obese people have twice the rate of chronic health problems as people of normal weight. This includes a 100% greater chance of developing Type 2 diabetes, 50% increased likelihood of developing heart disease. Obese men are nearly 90% more likely to get colon cancer.
• Junk food diet is a major cause of heart diseases.
• High cholesterol resulting from junk food puts undue strain on the liver, causing long-term damage to this essential organ.
• Research has suggested that diets high in fat may also impair essential brain functions, like concentration and memory.
• The junk food facts about soft drinks alone are alarming. There is compelling evidence that regular consumption of soft drinks leads to:

• Increased rates of bone fracture
• Increased risk for osteoporosis
• Increased risk of weight gain and obesity
• Increased risk for Type II Diabetes
• Increased risk for kidney stones
• Increased rate of tooth decay and other dental problems

Junk food facts are numerous, and the negative effect of junk food on health and wellbeing is undeniable.

To learn more about kicking the junk food habit, and the yogic approach to healthy eating, read our other articles on this subject:

1. The Yoga Diet – The yoga of healthy eating
2. Vegetarian Diet – For health and longevity

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