How to Stop Eating Fast Food

Fast food is a mainstay of many people's diets, due to its low cost, widespread availability, and appealing taste. However, fast food also causes a variety of health problems and can sometimes be addictive. Fortunately, by eliminating the temptation to eat fast food and replacing it with healthier alternatives, you can significantly reduce your fast food intake and hopefully stop eating it entirely.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Avoiding Temptation

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1
Write down the reasons why you want to give up fast food. You may want to stop eating fast food to improve your health, lose weight, save money, or any number of reasons. Reminding yourself of your reason for stopping will help you be able to resist cravings for fast food when they hit.^{[1]XResearch source}
- Write your reason or reasons for stopping on a sticky note and place it somewhere you'll see it when you feel tempted to eat fast food (e.g., in your car) to maximize its effectiveness.
- By being more intentional and mindful about why you want to stop eating fast food, you can hopefully address the root cause of why you tend towards fast food in the first place.^{[2]XExpert SourceAdrienne Youdim, MD
  Board Certified InternistExpert Interview. 11 September 2020.}
2
Identify your trigger foods and avoid them as much as possible. If there are certain fast foods, such as burgers, fries, or milkshakes, that cause you to crave fast food, it's important that you limit your exposure to them. The less you expose yourself to your trigger foods, the less you'll be tempted to eat fast food.^{[3]XResearch source}
- You may want to institute a complete ban on your trigger foods, at least until you feel like you've gotten your fast food habit under control.
- If you're out with others who want to eat your trigger foods, be willing to tell them that that would make you feel uncomfortable. They will probably understand and be willing to eat something else to accommodate you.
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3
Plan regular meals throughout the week to avoid being hungry. It's easy to opt for convenient fast food when you're hungry and out of healthy options to eat. To avoid putting yourself in this position, make a meal plan and prepare all of your meals for the coming week ahead of time.^{[4]XResearch source}
- Do as much of the prep work for your meals as you can. If the meals include multi-step preparations, such as marinating meat before cooking it, do these preparations at the start of the week and freeze or refrigerate the ingredients until it's time to cook.
- Bring healthy snacks you can eat at school or work during your meal breaks to avoid falling back on fast food when you're hungry. If the snacks are non-perishable, leave some in your office for future use.
4
Recognize when stress triggers you to eat fast food. Fast food is unfortunately very appealing as a comfort food during times of great stress. Thus, you can greatly reduce the temptation to eat fast food by avoiding stress or by dealing with stress in more healthy ways.^{[5]XExpert SourceAdrienne Youdim, MD
Board Certified InternistExpert Interview. 11 September 2020.}^{[6]XResearch source}
- Some healthy ways of dealing with stress include doing yoga, meditating, or speaking to a therapist.
- If you're stressed out about work or some other task, remind yourself before doing anything else that eating fast food won't reduce the amount of work you need to do.
- Emotions like fear, sadness, grief, and boredom can hijack your hunger hormones, so try to distinguish feeling apathetic from true physiological hunger.^{[7]XExpert SourceAdrienne Youdim, MD
  Board Certified InternistExpert Interview. 11 September 2020.}
5
Get 7-8 hours of sleep every night to keep your willpower strong. Studies have shown that when you don't get enough sleep, you tend to crave junk food more. Aim for around 8 hours of restful sleep each night to stay energized and avoid craving fast food.^{[8]XResearch source}
- Try to go to bed at a reasonable hour every night. This will not only help you to get enough sleep each night but will also help prevent late-night cravings for fast food.
6
Find healthy ways to deal with emotional issues without comfort food. Like when we're stressed, we often turn to fast food when we're sad, lonely, or experiencing some other negative emotion. Instead of using fast food to deal with these issues, find healthy alternatives you can use to grapple with your negative emotions.^{[9]XResearch source}
- Good examples of healthy means of dealing with your emotions include journaling, exercising, or expressing yourself creatively.
- If you're experiencing serious emotional issues, you may need to seek professional help to treat them.

Part 2

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Eating Healthier

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1
Eat a variety of healthy foods to avoid feeling bored with your diet. One of the more common complaints from people who switch from fast food to healthy food is that healthy food is bland or boring. To avoid falling into a rut, experiment with a wide variety of ingredients and recipes that are healthy but also exciting.^{[10]XResearch source}
- Examples of exciting but healthy foods might include BBQ chicken chopped salad, sriracha fish tacos, or cinnamon baked sweet potatoes.
- There are a lot of cookbooks and websites dedicated to healthy cooking, such as EatingWell and Whole Heartedly Healthy, that you can use to find new recipes to try out in the kitchen.
- For even more excitement, try adding new spices and sauces to recipes you've cooked before. For example, add sriracha sauce to fried rice or Asian noodles for a spicy kick.
Expert Answer
Q
Why should I stop eating fast food?
Adrienne Youdim, MD
Board Certified Internist
Dr. Adrienne Youdim is a Board Certified Internist specializing in medical weight loss and nutrition and founder and creator of Dehl Nutrition - a line of functional nutritional bars and supplements. With 10+ years of experience, Dr. Youdim uses a holistic approach to nutrition that blends lifestyle changes and evidence-based medicine. Dr. Youdim holds a BA from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and an MD from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). She completed her residency training and fellowship at Cedars-Sinai. Dr. Youdim holds multiple board certifications awarded by the American Board of Internal Medicine, the National Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists, and the American Board of Obesity Medicine. She is also a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Youdim is an Associate Professor of Medicine at UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. She has been featured on CBS News, Fox News, Dr. Oz, National Public Radio, W Magazine, and the Los Angeles Times.
EXPERT ADVICE
Answer from Adrienne Youdim, MD:
People can often turn to fast food when they're in a state of emotional distress or are feeling bored. This can cause people to eat food when they're not even physiologically hungry. Food prepping ahead of time and keeping a well-stocked pantry can make it easier for you to have access to readily available and accessible healthy food.
2
Use fruits, vegetables, and nuts in lieu of fast food as a snack. Nuts are great sources of protein that will help you feel full when you're hungry and give you energy throughout the day. Fruits and vegetables, meanwhile, are chock full of the nutrients your body needs every day.^{[11]XResearch source}
- Eating fruits like apples and bananas will also help to satisfy your sweet tooth if you ever crave fast food desserts.
- Consider carrying around nuts in a plastic jar or small baggie wherever you go so you can have them with you at all times.
- A well-stocked house and readily available/accessible food from advance food prep can make you less likely to go out and get fast food.^{[12]XExpert SourceAdrienne Youdim, MD
  Board Certified InternistExpert Interview. 11 September 2020.}
3
Replace soda with water to help manage your cravings. Drinking enough water each day will help you stay hydrated and thus prevent misplaced feelings of hunger. Men should drink roughly 3.7 litres (130 fl oz) of water per day and women should drink 2.7 litres (91 fl oz) per day. Replacing soda with water will also limit your sugar intake and reduce your cravings for sugary foods like fast food desserts.^{[13]XResearch source}
- You should avoid diet sodas as well, if possible. Although they don't contain sugar, evidence suggests they can still reinforce an addiction to sugar.
- Carry a refillable water bottle with you wherever you go to be able to drink water no matter where you are.
4
Allow yourself a little fast food from time to time to make quitting easier. It's perfectly normal to have trouble quitting fast food cold turkey. If this is the case, be willing to have “cheat meals” every once in a while to wean yourself off fast food more gradually.^{[14]XResearch source}
- Limit yourself to 1-2 cheat meals each week, eating small portions at each meal. You should try to limit your intake of fast food as much as possible.
- Try cooking healthier versions of your favorite fast foods at home. You may find this allows you to still get the taste of fast food without suffering the health consequences of eating it!
5
Choose healthier fast food options if you can't give it up entirely. Although almost no fast food option is entirely healthy, there are some options that are healthier than others. Opt for salads and grilled foods instead of fried and breaded items to minimize the impact of fast food on your health.
- If you choose salad, be wary of putting a lot of dressing or cheese on it, as these can add a lot of hidden calories and sugar to your otherwise healthy meal.
- If you don't see any healthy options on the menu, don't be afraid to ask for healthier options or substitutions. Restaurant staff may be willing to accommodate you if you ask nicely.

Help Choosing Healthier Options

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Question
Is eating at a restaurant a bad habit?
Tara Coleman
Clinical Nutritionist
Tara Coleman is a Clinical Nutritionist who has a private practice in San Diego, California. With over 15 years of experience, Tara specializes in sports nutrition, body confidence, and immune system health and offers personalized nutrition, corporate wellness, and online learning courses. She received a BS in Biology from James Madison University and spent six years in the pharmaceutical industry as an analytical chemist before founding her practice. Tara has been featured on NBC, CBS, Fox, ESPN, and Dr. Oz The Good Life as well as in Forbes, Cosmopolitan, Self, and Runner’s World.
Tara Coleman
Clinical Nutritionist
Expert Answer
It's okay to have a fun meal out every now and then, but plan on making your own healthy meals during most of the week.
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Beating a fast food addiction, like getting over any other addiction, is a lot easier when you're not going it alone. Talk to friends and family about your goals for your diet and ask if you can rely on them for support when you need it.
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