Research
Energy balance
Frequent fast food consumption is associated with higher total energy intake and a higher likelihood of failing to meet the Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for energy.
Frequent fast food eaters consume significantly more energy than recommended. This excess energy contributes to weight gain. Reducing fast food frequency can help align energy intake with requirements.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
Dietary energy intake and energy density were directly associated with frequency of fast food consumption... The risk of being obese increased with the frequency of fast food consumption (P= 0.046)... participants reporting the highest frequency of fast food consumption (> once per week) showed a significantly higher risk (OR 3.30 (95 % CI 1.52, 7.14)) of failing to meet the DRI for energy consumption.
Why this rating
Cross-sectional design, but clear statistical association.
Source
Association of fast food consumption with energy intake, diet quality, body mass index and the risk of obesity in a representative Mediterranean population
Helmut Schröder et al. · British Journal Of Nutrition · 2007
DOI 10.1017/s0007114507781436
cross_sectional · n=3058Cited 196×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Frequent fast food consumption (more than once per week) is directly associated with higher BMI and a significantly increased risk of obesity in Mediterranean adults.Moderate
- Frequent fast food consumption is inversely associated with overall diet quality, specifically lowering adherence to the Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS) and Healthy Eating Index (HEI).Moderate
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