For an average person in our current world today, fast foods are irresistible delicacies that we find hard to let go. With everything being so fast paced, from communication to education degrees, fast foods are many people’s weakness. After a long day from work, we all want that “quick fix.” You may plan on preparing the most healthy and elaborate traditional food and still think about going to the drive through to get a burger or simply dial in a delivery. It doesn’t help that fast foods have a diversified menu to choose from and many delivery apps offer excellent delivery services in a split second. It is evident now that so many fast food restaurants are mushrooming everywhere because owners have realised just how much profits they can make from running a fast food business. The demand for fast foods is staggeringly high. While many people gravitate towards fast food because it is cheaper, this is far from the truth. Even if it is not too obvious, fast foods are actually hurting your wallet. The long term effects for a person who takes to fast foods as their main diet is quite devastating. This goes to both their health and wealth. If you want to be more intentional about your finances, fast foods are one thing you should look into closely. There’s a lot of money that goes into waste on fast foods.
Here is why fast foods are bad for your wallet:
1. Health costs with fast food
Ever heard of the saying “health is wealth” or “you are what you eat?” These are very popular slogans and mantras for people who strive to stick to a healthy diet and avoid fast foods. Although fast foods and junk food cannot be used interchangeably, it goes without saying that most fast foods consist of junk food. Junk food comprises any type of food that has high amounts of sugar, salt and saturated fats e.g fried chicken, burgers, chips and sodas. When restaurants only produce these types of food in large parts for commercial purposes, they become fast foods. Now, there are serious health problems that await anyone who doesn’t want to steer clear from fast foods. For starters, obesity has been a pandemic in itself in many parts of the world, affecting both children and adults. Study also shows that too much intake of fast foods leads to cardiovascular disease like high blood pressure. If you are one to care about your finances or have any financial goals that require saving and investing, taking frequent trips to the hospital to get checked and get the necessary medication can take you millions worth of money back. You will not be making any financial progress because your health is at risk. This is very detrimental to your overall financial success.
2. You spend more with combos
A combo is what’s known as a combination meal. It is basically a type of meal that includes your food items of choice and a beverage or salad to make it a complete meal. Fast food restaurants usually offer the option of combo meals with the idea of lowering the prices for anyone who finds it costly to buy food items separately. However, it is important to note that while this is the objective, it doesn’t often play out. Combo meals are very enticing. While you could spend way less nibbling down on some chicken wings, you may be coerced into buying other items on the menu like drinks to accompany your meal. This has you paying more than you otherwise intended.
3. Impulse spending
Like I mentioned earlier, there are a lot of fast food restaurants today. These fast foods offer a wide variety of items to choose from on their menu. With the rising number of mobile delivery apps available, it is hard not to spend our money impulsively when we are ordering in. Say you want to have fried chicken for dinner, other options on the menu will have you pay extra to get them. You may suddenly start craving mouth watering fast food delicacies on the menu that you obviously have to spend more money on. If you are not intentional about your finances and you find this a bad habit to break, you are hurting your wallet. Impulse buying not only details your efforts towards effective budgeting, but also slows down your progress on meeting your financial goals and objectives.
4. Burns a hole in your pocket
Despite popular belief, fast foods are actually expensive. Say you are trying to feed a family of four on fast food for dinner. The average amount it will take you to buy ingredients and prepare a healthy home cooked meal is going to be way less than what you’d spend to order in and for delivery fees. If you have a meal plan and you consider fast food over a good home meal, when you do the math, you will find that you will be spending a lot of money on fast foods. This is a good indicator that fast food is not good for your wallet.
Final Thoughts
Study shows that 70% of individuals in families today opt for fast food rather than preparing a healthy family meal. While this is majorly brought forward by the difficulty in maintaining a healthy work-life balance, it is important to note that we cannot ignore our physical and financial well being when it comes to what we eat. If all you eat in a week is mainly fast food, this is a huge financial red flag you should not ignore. For many financially successful people, one thing they can attribute to the financial progress they’ve made in life is cutting down on fast foods. It will save you a lot of money. Start by looking into healthier options of meals and follow different cooking recipes online if you don’t know how to cook. Also, create a timeline for when you will cook and budget your money appropriately. You can order fast foods a few times, but be careful not to make it a norm. One thing about being very intentional with your finances is that you make sure you are cutting down on anything that’s hurting your wallet. With this decision, you stand a chance to not only save your financial future but also be healthier and happier.
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