Is McDonalds etc. as unhealthy as it's been demonized?

High fat, high salt, preservatives, no fiber - I'd say it is.

The coffee ain't bad.

Rap

Nah no way Res, 'way exaggerated….except I suppose for the rare customer who eats nowhere else and always orders the same items

Yes, definitely unhealthy on the whole. The fat content is extremely high. Animal fats are where all that carcinogenic preservatives and hormones are to be found.

Also they use inferior meat often with cereal added to stretch it. And in UK recently officials have found polluted spoiled (pink slime) meat that's hurt many people making them very sick.

Not to mention their management is very poorly trained. The fact is that they hire people and they get paid minimum wage and, sadly they often choose to come to work ill - passing their germs on to the public. Wouldn't trust a single one of those places as hygenic.

Well now Rag you might be onto something there--I've often wondered about myself

My health freak friends recommend a couple of the McDonalds salads.

I'm a fan for one thing in particular.

McDonalds was the first fast food place up here that offered honey to have with tea. I often pick up a large green tea there and having the honey option has been terrific.

Out of all those fast food places, Wendy's salads I think are pretty good. I just choose healthier condiments and add-ons and get dressing on the side. And I pick the healthier dressings.

Straight from McDonald's - their nutritional info -
http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/getnutrition/nutritionfacts.pdf

Note a few things.

1. Sodium is rather high for a lot of these items. 1280 mg for a Quarter Pounder with Cheese! The RDA for sodium is about 2400 mg, so this one item gives you more than half of that. Add a ketchup packet (100 mg), side salad (10 mg) with low fat balsamic vinaigrette dressing (340 mg), large fries (350 mg), a small diet Coke (20 mg), an Oreo McFlurry (280 mg) and you are at 2380 mg. And don't get me started on the calorie count for a meal like that.
   
2. Look at how low the iron quantities are, even for meat items. That's telling me that the meat is being stretched with something that is, most likely, less nutritious.
   
3. The RDA for trans fats is zero, but you're allowed up to about 10 g on a daily basis but really should strive for a lot less. Fortunately, most of the menu items are low in this.
   
4. There are some decent choices, if you know where to look. The side salad is fine, but the dressings are abhorrent, so either bring your own dressing or go without. The kiddie cone is one of the best fast food dessert items around. Add peanuts (or, better yet, add the peanuts to your salad).

this site isn't available in the U.S. yet

http://yourquestions.mcdonalds.ca/

it's got some interesting info

I learned a lot at an event last year about how bizarrely fresh some of the food is.

Well done, Jespah. Excellent facts.

Personally, my sodium goal is typically under a daily avg of 1500 mg. I have different priorities being 62 yrs and having certain health issues. Luckily one of the health issues is not kidney or BP or arterial congestive heart issues. However due to my family history of cardiac issues, I still keep my fat intake low (zero transfats) and as little animal fat as possible. Likewise, I keep hydrogenated (or partial-hydrog) fats to a minimum. I have the misfortune of having an arrhythmia and cardiomyopathy (belated birth defect to heart) that keeps me with a physical limitation for the last 10 yrs, so I try to keep a walking program going.

I stay out of fast food places with one exception... once in a blue-moon, I'll hit Wendy's for a salad when I'm on the road.

Is McDonalds etc. as unhealthy as it's been demonized?

Yes, it is. It's probably worse than you've been lead to believe.

I'll have two quarter pounders with cheese, onions only, and a super-size fries . . . to go.

I like Wendy's, though not every day. Their Jr cheesburger deluxe is good. Make it a meal, and it's really cheap. You might even try the chili cheese baked potato. Tell them roger sent you.

Wendy's small chili is considered to be another good fast food, in terms of nutrition.

One thing to keep in mind - one good thing does not make for a good menu. It does not provide a pass on everything else that a place has to offer (and the reverse is true as well).

Hello Friends,

Chef Daniel Coudreaut is the senior director of culinary innovation for McDonald’s USA the guy who knows every single fry and apple pie on the drive-thru board. He recently had a chat with a Cleveland journalist where he defended the offerings his employers put forth for 26 million Americans, saying, “I don’t see anything on the menu that’s unhealthy.” Coudreaut, speaking with the Akron Beacon Journal, isn’t just blindly defending the food, as he says his own kids eat at McDonald’s about once a week, and that they even eat Chicken McNuggets. Which, by the way, are what culinarians would call “forcemeat,” he says. Ground white meat, shaped and tempura battered, then fried.

Thanks and Regards,
Milon Jones

Scum-suking spam bot . . .

couldn't agree more, all that said constitute a really harmful food.
Of course, it's not like poison which you can die from within really short time,
but it's proven to be the cause of many diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, kidney failors (from diabetes).. etc.

Well now, here's a review to tickle your palette not:

http://www.laweekly.com/restaurants/neal-fraser-and-mcdonalds-troll-la-food-writers-and-we-were-there-6567618

Made me smile in a grimacing way ~~