Publication:

Correlation between fast food consumption and lipid profiles

Abnormalities in lipid profile, known as dyslipidemia, refer to elevated levels of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and triglycerides (TG), in addition to low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in the blood. Dyslipidemia is widely spread among the population, and this rise in dyslipidemia is attributed to changes in dietary habits and shifts towards fast food predominated diet. The widespread consumption of fast food is linked to adverse health impacts, including rise in obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Fast food is characterized by large portion size and unusually high energy density. It contains higher levels of sugars, fats, and salt, in addition to suboptimal levels of dietary fibers and micronutrients. Moreover, due to the heavy processing and packaging of fast food, it usually contains harmful compounds and by-products that further exacerbate the undesirable health impacts of fast-food diet. This narrative review aims to outline current knowledge regarding the association between the rise in fast food consumption and lipid profile abnormalities, including how the poor nutritional composition of fast food contributes to fluctuations in TC, TG, LDL-C and HDL-C levels in the blood and development of dyslipidemia.