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Junk Food
Junkies
by Les
Brod
So … thinking
about another potato chip or piece of candy? Before you reach for more junk food – those
snacks high in sugar fat and, consequently, calories – think a moment about the effects. Junk
food consumption is a major health problem in modern society. Junkies, those people who are
addicted to such empty calories, frequently are overweight and malnourished and have a tendency
toward diabetes – all serious problems which could be prevented by sensible
eating.
The Effects of Junk
Food
The most obvious
problem arising from eating candy, cakes, chips and other sugary or high fat foods is the large
amount of empty calories – those with no nutritional value – that the body does not need.
Every time you reach for a candy bar or a bag of chips instead of an apple, you are adding several
hundred calories to your daily intake. Drinking sugary soft drinks will add even more. Continued day
after day, year after year, the body simply stores all of these extra calories in the form of fat,
and the individual gradually becomes overweight.
Not only does junk food
contribute to weight problems, but it may also lead to malnutrition. Consumption of large amounts of
empty calories means that the individual is simply not getting the proper nutrition. Sugar replaces
potassium; fat replaces calcium; sugar and fat replace what was a healthy diet. Anemia, fatigue, poor
muscle tone and dermatitis are only some of the symptoms. However, obesity and malnutrition are
probably not the most serious of consequences.
Addiction to junk food
may be a near factor in causing diabetes mellitus in those who have a genetic predisposition or a
deficiency of beta cells caused by inflammation, malignant invasion or surgery of the pancreas. There
is an imbalance in the body’s metabolism or hyperglycemia – excessive sugar in the blood
– and if allowed to progress, it may lead to a deep coma resulting in death. The junk food
junkie is hooked. It is an easy habit to start but a hard one to stop.
Junk food – seemingly harmless but
really a curse of modern life – can lead to obesity, malnutrition, and even diabetes – a
life-threatening illness. At best, this means poor health and appearance, at worst serious illness or
death. A well-balanced diet adequate in all basic essentials – carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
vitamins, minerals and fluids – is all that is required for sound nutrition. Reach for a banana,
not a candy bar; have an afandi, not potato chips. You’ll look better, feel better, run
faster – if you run – and live longer.
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