"Healthy" Fast Food Is No Better for Your Heart

Research by the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf in Germany found so-called “healthy” fast food alternatives to have the same effect on the cardiovascular system as standard fast food meals.

Twenty-four healthy volunteers with an average age of 32 years, ate one of three fast food meals during one week, a different meal the second week, and the remaining meal the third week. The fast food meals consisted of:

1. Beef burger, fries, ketchup, lemon-flavored carbonated drink
2. Vegetarian burger, fries, ketchup, lemon-flavored carbonated drink
3. Vegetarian burger, salad, fruit, yogurt, orange juice

Surprisingly, according to lead investigator Dr. Tanja K. Rudolph, endothelial function was adversely affected within 2 to 4 hours after eating any of these three meals, with no statistically significant differences between them.

All three meals also had negative impact on other cardiovascular disease markers.

Endothelial cells line the inside of your blood vessels. These cells control blood flow by regulating the dilation of the blood vessels. When these endothelial cells are impaired, it can lead to high blood pressure or atherosclerosis (clogging of the arteries), which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

According to Dr. Rudolph, "You can not prevent the harmful effects of fast food to the vascular system if you only add 'healthy components.'”

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition August, 2007 ;86(2):334-340
Reuters August 15, 2007

The Danger of Ignoring High Fructose Corn Syrup
High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is the main ingredient in most soft drinks, and is one of the most commonly used sweeteners in processed food products (including fruit juices like orange juice) in general. The only way to avoid it is by focusing your diet on whole foods and, if you do purchase packaged foods, become an avid label reader.
High-fructose corn syrup increases your triglyceride levels and your LDL (bad) cholesterol. Even though they don’t specify all the ingredients in the three fast food meals provided during this study, I believe it’s fair to assume they included plenty of HFCS.
Fructose is absorbed differently than other sugars, which may have nutritional consequences. When glucose (sugar) is consumed, it increases production of insulin, which enables sugar in the blood to be transported into cells where it can be used for energy. It also increases production of leptin, a hormone that helps regulate appetite and fat storage, and suppresses production of ghrelin, a hormone made by the stomach that helps regulate food intake. Because of this reaction, it has been suggested that after eating glucose, hunger declines.
Fructose, on the other hand, does not stimulate insulin secretion, or increase leptin production, or suppress production of ghrelin. This is the mechanism explaining how consuming a lot of fructose may contribute to weight gain.
Fructose is also converted into the chemical backbone of trigylcerides more efficiently than glucose, and elevated levels of trigylcerides are linked to an increased risk of heart disease.
Since it has become such a large part of Americans’ diets -- consumption of beverages containing fructose has risen 135 percent from 1977 to 2001 -- HFCS has been linked to:

• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Metabolic Syndrome
• Cardiovascular disease

It’s unfortunate that this study made no mention of HFCS, as it may be partly to blame for why the “healthier” fares didn’t provide any protection against vascular damage.