Is There Such a Thing as Healthy Fast Food?

There are many, many fast food restaurants out there these days.  Obviously, if you are following a Real Food lifestyle, fast food is usually off limits!  But, there are many fast food type restaurants that are marketed as being ‘healthy fast food'…or at least ‘healthier'.  Is this true?

Do you follow The Food Babe?  She is an awesome blogger and  has written some pretty amazing exposes on some of the popular ‘healthy' fast food chains.  I have learned a lot from reading her articles, I thought I would share the links with you!

I thought of this round up style post recently when I was having a conversation with someone about fast food and eating on the go.  It is hard when you have kids, lots of activities and are out and about all day.  She made a comment about how Moe's Southwest Grill (a southwestern quick service restaurant chain) is ‘healthier' because they use ‘grass fed beef'.  I knew this wasn't totally true from reading Food Babe's posts over the years.  Moe's does have some pretty good ‘greenwashing' marketing however, as do many of these other restaurants.

I will confess, I sometimes eat at the restaurants listed below also.  In fact, I probably eat at 2 or 3 of them each month.  I think several of these restaurants offer good alternatives for those evenings when you are on the go and haven't planned ahead for your meals.  However, a few of them have pretty slick marketing campaigns that cause the average consumer to think they are healthier than they are.

Here's the round up of Food Babe's posts.  Once you check them out, you can decide for yourself how to make a healthy choice at one of these restaurants!

Jason's Deli

Do you eat at Jason's Deli?  I will admit that this is one I have not eaten at very often.  Here's what Food Babe had to say about What's Healthy and What's Not at Jason's Deli.

Chick Fil A

I will admit that this was one of my favorites back before my Real Food days. The chicken sandwich with the polynesian sauce still makes me drool 😉  I was surprised recently to find out that some people think that Chick Fil A is a ‘healthier' option.  I never thought that, just thought it was tasty.  Food Babe almost started a riot when she wrote about Chick Fil A.  But the cool thing is she was invited down to the headquarters to talk about making it improvements to their menu.

I will say I like their lemonade.  It is made with real sugar and fresh squeezed lemons.  Something that is hard to come by these days!

Here are her posts about children eating at Chick Fil A and another on the chemical content in Chick Fil A foods.

Whole Foods

What?  Whole Foods is fast food?  Well, not exactly.  However, you can pop in and grab plenty of prepared items both hot and cold.  Oftentimes, my family even eats dinner there if we are out and about and my husband regularly grabs his lunch there during the week.  While, clearly, Whole Foods is a healthier option than most, I think many people are surprised that not everything at Whole Foods is ‘clean' or ‘real'.  Personally, I get so tired of the prepared foods containing GMO canola oil.

Here's the look at What to Watch out for at Whole Foods.

Chipotle and Moe's Southwestern Grill

This one really got me.  While I do not eat at Moe's (we don't have one near us), we do eat at Chipotle on occasion.  I will say I still choose to do so.  Something to mention is recently Chipotle came out and labeled GMOs on their menu, which is a huge step toward giving the consumer the ability to decide if they want to eat GMOs or not.

Here's Food Babe's look at Chipotle vs. Moe's.  (When she wrote this, Chipotle refused to list their ingredients….now they do!  Pretty sure she had something to do with that!)

Starbucks

This is another one that surprises many people.  With Starbucks on almost every corner, it seems that many of us are popping in to grab a coffee and a snack quite often.  There are a surprisingly large number of chemicals and additives at Starbucks.

Subway

I have never been a fan of Subway.  Their meats always looked so slimy and gross, to me.  If I did ever eat there, I would usually get the veggie sub or tuna salad.  Now that I know more about the quality of their products, I would choose to eat elsewhere.  “Eat Fresh” at Subway is pretty much a joke.

Here's Food Babe's take on Subway.

Panera

This one was disappointing and surprising to me.  Although, really, who is surprised anymore by what is in our food?  I meet friends and clients often at Panera.  I generally just get an iced tea or a coffee.

Many people would think this was the ‘healthiest' fast food restaurant.  Is it?  Here's her take on Panera.

What are your thoughts?  Are you surprised by any of this?  Do you eat at any of these restaurants?  Will you continue to do so?

I will admit that I eat at all of these (with the exception of Jason's Deli and Moe's) and probably will continue to do so.  But, I think an educated consumer is an empowered consumer.  I feel more empowered to make my decision on what food to put into my body.

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This post shared at these awesome blog carnivals:  Real Food Wednesday, Frugal Days Sustainable Ways, Whole Foods Wednesday, Party Wave Wednesday, Wildcrafting Wednesday, Simple Lives Thursday, Thank Your Body Thursday, Tasty Traditions, Fresh Bites Friday, Link Love, Simple Meals Friday, Fight Back Friday, Natural Living Friday, Old Fashioned Friday, Small Footprint Friday, Weekend Whatever, Sunday School, Make Your Own Monday, More the Merrier Monday, Homestead Barn Hop, Thank Goodness It’s Monday, Fat Tuesday,  Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Traditional Tuesdays, Family Table Tuesdays, Tuned In Tuesdays