Junk food

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Cheetos are commonly considered a junk food.

The Luther Burger, a bacon cheeseburger which employs a glazed donut in place of each bun, is considered a junk food partially due to the high sugar and fat content.

Junk food is an informal term applied to some foods which are perceived to have little or no nutritional value, or to products with nutritional value but which also have ingredients considered unhealthy when regularly eaten, or to those considered unhealthy to consume at all. The term was coined by Michael Jacobson, director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, in 1972.^[1]
Junk foods are typically ready to eat convenience foods containing high levels of saturated fats, salt, or sugar; and little or no fruit, vegetables, or dietary fibre, and dont provide any health benefits.
Junk food includes foods such as soft drinks, hamburgers, hot dogs, ice cream, cake, French fries, chocolate and other confectionery, pizza, cookies, fried chicken, onion rings and donuts.

Contents [hide] 1 Marketing 2 Health effects 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

Marketing

During 2006, in the United Kingdom, following a high profile media campaign by the chef Jamie Oliver and a threat of court action from the National Heart Forum,^[2] the UK advertising regulator and competition authority, launched a consultation on advertising of foods to children.^[3] The Food Standards Agency was one of many respondents.^[4] As a result, a ban on advertising during children's television programmes and programmes aimed at school aged children (5-16) was announced.^[5] The ban also includes marketing using celebrities, cartoon characters and health or nutrition claims.

Health effects

A study by Paul Johnson and Paul Kenny at The Scripps Research Institute suggested that junk food alters brain activity in a manner similar to addictive drugs like cocaine or heroin.^[6] After many weeks on a junk food diet, the pleasure centers of rat brains became desensitized, requiring more food for pleasure. After the junk food was taken away and replaced with a healthy diet, the rats starved for two weeks instead of eating nutritious fare.^[7] A 2007 British Journal of Nutrition study found that mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy increased the likelihood of unhealthy eating habits in their children.^[8]

Whole foods

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For other uses, see Whole Foods (disambiguation).

Whole foods are foods that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible before being consumed. Whole foods typically do not contain added ingredients, such as sugar, salt, or fat.^[1] Examples of whole foods include unpolished grains; fruits and vegetables; unprocessed meat, poultry, and fish; and non-homogenized milk.
The term is often confused with organic food, but whole foods are not necessarily organic, nor are organic foods necessarily whole. Because of the lack of basic processing, some whole foods have a very short shelf life.
The United States Food and Drug Administration defines whole grains as cereal grains containing the bran, endosperm and germ of the original grain.^[2] Federal Dietary Guidelines issued by the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion in 2005 recommended the consumption of at least three servings of whole grains each day, as there is evidence that they help cut risk of cancer and heart disease.^[2]
There are several ways to meet the body's needs with respect to whole foods. One way is to consume a variety of fresh raw fruits and vegetables every day.
"Diets rich in whole and unrefined foods, like whole grains, dark green and yellow/orange-fleshed vegetables and fruits, legumes, nuts and seeds, contain high concentrations of antioxidant phenolics, fibers and numerous other phytochemicals that may be protective against chronic diseases."^[1]