Healthy Fast Food
Is there any healthy fast food items? You will discover the answer to that question in this survey.
Picture this: you're on a long road trip in the middle of nowhere, are pressed for time, and are starving. The only restaurants within any convenience are at the major highway stops. You know that fast food will hurt your diet, but there's no other food options.
What do you do?
You've been in this situation before. You suck it up, order a burger, fries, and soda combo, and get back on the road. You shrug your shoulders, and tell yourself it's ok and you'll prepare better next time.
The problem is, next time is the same as this time. You wish there was healthy fast food options to make eating on the road a little less terrifying.
Lucky for you, there are healthy fast food options. You just have to know what they are.
This survey will tell you the healthiest entrees, salads, fries, and breakfast items to choose when your best food options are fast food chains.
Menu items from the largest fast food chains in America: Burger King, Chik-fil-a, McDonald's, Subway, Taco Bell, and Wendy's, were considered in this survey. Items were compared against each other for calories, fat, carbohydrates, and protein and the top healthiest items in each category are listed as a guide for you when choosing healthy fast food options.
Healthiest Entree
Winner: Chik-fil-a Grilled Nuggets (8 count)
Runner-up: Subway Turkey Breast (6-inch sub)
If you guessed that a burger would not be one of the healthier options for an entree, you were right. Chik-fil-A scored the top spot for healthiest entree with their 8-count grilled nuggets. Not surprisingly, Subway has the 2nd healthiest food option with the Turkey Breast sub. In fact, Subway holds 7 of the top 10 spots for healthiest entrees from fast food restaurants.
Healthiest Salad
Winner: Subway Black Forest Ham and Subway Turkey Breast
Runner-up: Subway Roast Beef
Subway has long been known as a fast food chain dedicated to providing healthy food options. Their salads are some of the healthiest you can find, from any restaurant. Just remember to choose a light dressing for your salad. Red wine vinegar mixed with mustard is a tasty and fat-free delight.
Healthiest Fries
Winner: Burger King
Runner-up: McDonald's
I cringe to call fries from any fast food restaurant "healthy". They're not healthy, but the fries from BK and MickeyD's are less fattening than the rest. If you crave fries, choose a smaller size to minimize the damage.
Healthiest Breakfast
Winner: McDonald's Egg White Delight
Runner-up: Chik-fil-a Sunflower Multigrain Bagel w/ Cream Cheese
McDonald's was the first fast food chain to offer breakfast, and they are the first to offer a great healthy option. The Egg White Delight is as healthy a mix of calories, fat, carbs, and protein as you can make at home. Although just a bit higher in calories than the Chik-fil-a Multigrain Bagel, Chik-fil-a's Egg White Grill is another contender for the healthiest fast food breakfast.
Conclusion:
Healthy fast food options are limited for sure. But for people like us who are conscious of what we put in our bodies, it's important to know what to eat when we're destined for fast food. Hopefully this survey will help you to make healthy decisions with fast food options.
For recommendations on starting to eat healthier, check out my guide, Beginner's Guide to Eating Healthy.