junk food

Junk food

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Junk food

is a pejorative term for

food

containing high levels

of

calories

from

sugar

or

fat

with little

protein

,

vitamins

or

minerals

. Use of the term

implies that a particular food has little

nutritional value

excessive

fat

,

sugar

,

salt

, and

calorie s

.

[1][2][3]

Junk food can also refer to high protein food

containing large amounts of meat prepared with, for example, too much

unhealthy

saturated fat

;

[

citation needed

]

many hamburger outlets, fried chicken outlets and the

like supply food considered junk food.

[4]

[

better source needed

]

Despite being labeled as

concerns and are generally safe when integrated into a well balanced diet.

[5]

However,

concerns about the negative health effects resulting from the consumption of a

food

public health

awareness campaigns, and restrictions

on

advertising

and sale in several countries.

[6][7][8]

Origin of the term

The term

junk food

dates back at least to the early 1950s, although it has been reported

that it was coined in 1972 by

Michael F. Jacobson

of the

Center for Science in the Public

Interest

.

[3]

In 1952, it appeared in a headline in the Lima, Ohio,

News

,

Foods' Cause Serious Malnutrition,

Utah,

Standard- Examiner

, originally headlined,

: More Junk

Than Food.

anything made principally of (1) white flour and or (2) refined white sugar or syrup. For

example, white bread, crackers, cake, candy, ice cream soda, chocolate malted, sundaes,

sweetened carbonated beverages.

[10]

The term

cheat food

can be traced back in

newspaper mentions to at least 1916.

[11]

Definition

Andrew F. Smith, in his book,

Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food

defines junk food

as

and soft drinks, which have little or no nutritional value but do have plenty of calories, salt,

and fats. While not all fast foods are junk foods, most are. Fast foods are ready-to-eat

foods served promptly after ordering. Some fast foods are high in calories and low in

nutritional value, while other fast foods, such as salads, may be low in calories and high in

nutritional value.

[12]

Foods commonly considered junk foods include salted

snack foods

,

gum

,

candy

,

sweet

desserts

,

fried

fast food

, and sugary

carbonated beverages

.

[13]

Many foods such

as

hamburgers

,

pizza

, and

tacos

can be considered either healthy or junk food depending

on their ingredients and preparation methods.

[14]

The more highly

processed

items usually

fall under the junk food category,

[15]

including breakfast cereals that are mostly sugar or

high-fructose corn syrup and white flour or milled corn.

[16]

Especially in the case of ethnic foods, a classification as

rather offensive, given that such foods may have been prepared and consumed for

centuries and may contain healthy ingredients.

[

citation needed

]

In the book,

Panic Nation:

Unpicking the Myths We're Told About Food and Health

, a complementary point is argued:

food is food, and if there is no nutritional value, then it isn't a food of any type,

otherwise.

[17]

Co-editor Vincent Marks explains,

way of saying, 'I disapprove of it.' There are bad diets - that is, bad mixtures and quantities

of food - but there are no 'bad foods' except those that have become bad through

contamination or deterioration.

[18]

Popularity and appeal

Junk food in its various forms is extremely popular, and an integral part of modern popular

culture. In the US, annual fast food sales are in the area of $$160 billion,

[19]

compared to

supermarket sales of $$620 billion

[20]

(a figure which also includes junk food in the form

of

convenience foods

, snack foods, and candy). In 1976,

Junk Food Junkie

,

junk food addict who pretends to follow a healthy diet by day, while at night he

clandestinely gorges on

Hostess Twinkies

and

Fritos

corn chips,

McDonalds

and

KFC

,

became a Top 10 pop hit in the US.

[21]

Thirty-six years later,

Time

placed the Twinkie at #1

in its

supermarket shelves and in our bellies, they've been a staple in our popular culture and,

above all, in our hearts. Often criticized for its lack of any nutritional value whatsoever, the

Twinkie has managed to persevere as a cultural and gastronomical icon.

[22]

America also celebrates an annual National Junk Food Day on July 21. Origins are

unclear; it is one of around 175 US food and drink days, most created by

want to sell more food,

association or commodity group.

[23]

)

Time

in 2014 published,

Crazy Junk Food Combinations.

include:

-Flavored Oreos?

(

MTV

);

[24]

(Baltimore);

[25]

[26]

National Junk Food Day

Huffington Post

);

[27]

and

Junk Food Day: Got snacks?

[28]

That the poor eat more junk food overall than the more affluent is quite well-established,

but the reasons for this are not clear.

[29]

Few studies have focused on variations in food

perception according to socio-economic status (SES); some studies that have

differentiated based on SES suggest that the economically challenged don't perceive

healthy food much differently than any other segment of the population.

[30]

Recent

research into scarcity, combining behavioral science and economics, suggests that, faced

with extreme economic uncertainty, where even the next meal may not be a sure thing,