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How many times have you walked in the front door after a long, exhausting day's work and realized that you still have a family to feed? Or perhaps, you don't have a family at all, and it would be a waste of time, energy and resources to cook a nice, big dinner just for one person. Naturally, the mind begins to debate whether or not a quick car ride to the local fast food franchise would be easier, and dare I say "more yummy", than going through the effort of rummaging through the pantry to put together a meal. Living in close proximity to a fast food restaurant could not only slowly drain the bucks from your wallet, but it might also mean a detrimental dive in terms of your health.

Statistics show that if given a choice, most Americans would choose some form of fast food over a simple, home-cooked meal. Delving into the reasons behind this mystery, it becomes apparent that this is just one more symptom of the "I want it now" generation. There is a reason that fast food shacks are stratigically placed in close proximity to residential areas, schools and freeways. There is also a reason why most self-respecting fast food joints have thier very own "drive-thru" window; anything to make it easier for the consumer to decide that a speedily processed meal complete with it's own handy-dandy carry bag is more appealing than a trip to the grocery store and time spent slaving over a stove.

Startling research into the areas of health and fast food has slowly been emerging over the past decade. We all know that it is unhealthy for your diet to consist of regular stops at the local Mc Donald's or Jack In The Box, but according to research out of the University of Michigan, a person's risk of having a stroke increases according to the number of fast food restaurants in thier neighborhood. Out of 64 census areas in Texas, researchers found a 13 percent increase in strokes in the neighborhoods with a denser population of fast food restaurants. The authors of the study suggest that the risk of stroke rose roughly one percent for every fast food restaurant in a given neighborhood. Of course, these findings are only preliminary, and it is unknown whether the prescense of the restaurants caused the actual increase or whether neighborhoods with a higher number of fast food restaurants were simply less healthy for a broad number of reasons, but the results still remain.

It's common sense to most people that what we put into your bodies in terms of food has a direct relationship with our overall health, yet, even in a time of economic crisis, most fast food franchises are easily holding their own. Until Americans can break from their love affair of all things "easy" and "instant", we are likely to see a nation in the grips of a health catastrophe. Certainly, both reason and research support the fact that living in close proximity to a fast food restaurant certainly has detrimental effects on health.

Learn more about this author, Sarah Williams.
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