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To have a healthy functioning immune system requires that you have good digestion. You get a healthy digestive system by eating a diet consisting of healthy foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, fiber, and low processed foods.

While our modern day life can be both hectic and busy causing more people to eat out and eat junk food, it is imperative that we start paying attention to dietary stress and the effect that it has on our digestive systems.

Eating Fast Food, Restaurant Food, Junk Food And the Digestion System

Eating too much fast food, restaurant food, and junk food is a common phenomenon these days. The normal traditions of making food from scratch has been replaced by eating fast food, restaurant food, and junk food that are highly processed and don’t require a lot of preparation. Fast food and Junk food is cheap and easily available, making it a popular choice among all people young and old.

A recently published study indicated that young people who eat a lot of fast food and junk food have a higher incidence of developing obesity, high blood glucose levels, and hypertension—all from eating foods that are unhealthy for them.

The incidence of these disorders in as high as 25 percent, particularly among young people living in urban populations and those from a low socioeconomic background.

Fast food, restaurant food, and junk food all have high amounts of fats, salt, carbohydrates, and refined sugars. They are also low in nutrition, which can lead to poor nutrient uptake, poor digestion, and the disease mentioned above. People who eat a lot of fast food, restaurant food, and junk food often have various health problems, such as high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity to name a few.

Fast food, restaurant food and junk food are all highly processed and they don’t have very much water and fiber in them, which can lead to constipation and other health problems.

Fast food, restaurant food and junk food are also very bad for the digestive system because it slows down the digestive process, making for bloating of the stomach and other digestive problems like abdominal cramps and excess gas.

The stomach needs a healthy amount of enzymes in order to properly digest food and most fast food, restaurant food and junk food don’t contain these enzymes. These foods lack fiber, which is necessary for the absorption of nutrients and the excretion of water through the bowels and the kidneys. This can result in irritable bowel syndrome and poor digestion.

Effects of Fast Foods, Restaurant Food And Junk Food On The Body

Fast foods, restaurant food, and junk food are usually high in calories and low in nutrition. If you eat too many of these types of foods in your diet, your health may suffer and you may gain weight. The effects of eating these types of foods too often on the body include the following:

• Fast foods have too many calories in them, leading to obesity
• Fast foods can cause insulin resistance, which can lead to type 2 diabetes
• Fast foods can contribute to high blood pressure
• Fast foods can lead to depressive symptoms
• Fast foods can wreck your teeth
• Fast foods can cause shortness of breath, especially when you don’t exercise
• Fast foods can cause puffiness in the body
• Fast foods can lead to bloating
• Fast foods can cause acne
• Fast foods can lead to headaches from excess preservatives
• Fast foods can be unhealthy for your heart
• Fast foods can cause elevated cholesterol in the bloodstream
• Fast foods can cause spikes in blood sugar, which can lead to type 2 diabetes 

Maintaining A Healthy Digestion System

There are things you can do to maximize the digestive process that don’t involve just eating healthy foods. Some recommendations include the following:

• Eat small and more frequent meals containing healthy nutrients and fiber
• Get enough sleep as this can rejuvenate the digestive system
• Enjoy food slowly, focusing on chewing carefully and eating foods that are healthy for you
• When fruits and vegetables are in season, make use of them in your diet as much as possible
• Get regular exercise, at least 150 minutes of exercise per week to maximize digestion
• Decrease the intake of simple sugars, such as sucrose, which is common table sugar
• Reduce your caloric intake as too many calories can cause weight gain
• Take a good quality probiotic and digestive enzyme from a reputable source
• Eat your last meal or snack 60 minutes before you go to sleep

Healthy foods provide your body with the fuel it needs to do all of your bodily functions, including digestion. Eating healthy also affects how you feel and affects your overall health in so many positive ways. While some fast foods, restaurant food, and junk food aren’t inherently bad for you, most are high in carbohydrates, salt, unhealthy fats, sugar, and most are highly processed, meaning that they don’t digest well.

Fast foods are also high in caloric content but don’t provide you with the nutrition you need. When you replace a healthy diet with fast foods, you can suffer from weight gain, ill health, and poor nutrition. Eating out or eating fast foods to often can cause you to gain weight which in turn can lead to a host of other health problems, such as stroke, diabetes, and heart disease.  Let me also interject here that if you cook unhealthy at home you can suffer the same ill health as those that eat out to often or those that eat too much junk food.

In short, eating too much fast food, restaurant food, and junk food all adds to the stress on your digestive system, resulting in poor nutrition and a host of health problems that can be alleviated by avoiding these types of food and eating more foods that are prepared naturally at home.