We live in a world where everyone is always on the go. No time for breakfast? No problem, stop at McDonald’s on the way. Hunger pangs bothering you? A freshly baked cheesy pizza is just a call away.

But you may want to take a step back and analyze how this constant reliance on junk food is affecting your health in, you guessed it, adverse ways. Read on, your body is going to thank you for it.

10. It is making you lazier

Although junk food makes you feel full and satisfied, it lacks all the necessary nutrients like proteins and carbohydrates to keep your body energized and healthy. Those who eat a poor diet over the long term may actually become lazy and fatigued, as well as gaining weight and suffering the health consequences associated with being overweight.In the future, try drinking lemon water in the mornings whenever you feel like eating junk food. This speeds up the metabolism

9. You’re losing on the joy that cooking for yourself and/or friends brings

What happened to the tradition of moms passing on their delicious recipes down to their kids? What happened to romantic home cooked dinners? How did it get replaced by unhealthy takeouts? The love that’s packed in home cooked meals cannot be beaten, especially not by loaded-with-preservatives fast food.

8. It is making us obese

In a country where half the people go to bed hungry, this is almost like abusing your privilege. But quite shockingly, India is the third most obese country in the world. People who eat fast food as a regular part of their diets consume more fats, carbohydrates and processed sugar and less fiber than those who do not eat fast food regularly. Junk food in these people’s diets accounts for 187 extra calories per day, leading to 6 additional pounds of weight gain per year. Obesity increases your risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and many other chronic health conditions

7. It affects the brain function

Recent research suggests that bad fats (trans-fats) from junk food tend to replace healthy fats in the brain and interfere with its normal signaling mechanism. Studies in animals have also shown that fats from junk food slow down the ability to learn new skills. Would you rather go to a good college or the new Burger King?

6. It can cause depression in teenagers

A lot of hormonal changes take place in teenagers which makes them susceptible to mood swings and behavioral changes. And a healthy diet plays an important role in maintaining that hormonal balance. Because junk food lacks those essential nutrients, the likelihood of teenagers to suffer from depression is increased by 58 percent. Since teenagers stay out a lot, they spend a lot of time munching on those snacks.One way of beating this is to make a habit of carrying a fruit or a healthy snack bar in bags or purses, and curb the craving of junk food by eating those instead.

5. Low food quality

One of the main reasons the junk food industry is buzzing is because of how cheap it is. It is thus no surprise that most brands are willing to dilute their quality to generate maximum profits. With that goal in mind, they are more than willing to sacrifice ingredients altogether. NDTV recently reported that the tomato sauce used on the pizza is not just made with tomatoes but mixed with red pumpkin as filler for the sauce. Also, they found that the cheese is no longer a dairy but a derivative of mayonnaise with heavy stabilizers. These facts are more scary than shocking.

4. The unhygienic conditions in which the food is prepared

Even though junk food industry has spread its roots far and wide in the country, it still has a long way to go in terms of the conditions of food preparation. Most of the workers in charge of preparing the food are untrained and do not follow the basic hygiene rules for cooking and cleaning.

3. Misinformation about the contents of the food

According to a study by the Centre For Science and Environment, companies resort to large scale misbranding and misinformation. Many say their products contain zero trans fats, but CSE found heavy doses of it. They also found that the normal 80 gram packet of Maggi noodles that many of us gobble almost on a daily basis has over 3.5 gram of salt, enough to take care of over 60 percent of our permitted daily salt intake as per the National Institute of Nutrition and the World Health Organisation. Which means that for the rest of the day, we will be restricted to have food which should contain less than 2 gram of salt.

2.It has a high amount of trans-fats

Trans fat can make food taste good and last longer on grocery-store shelves but it also makes the food more hazardous for your heart. Its consumption has been linked to higher body weight, more aggression and heart disease. As doctors say, while trans fats increase the shelf life of foods, they reduce the shelf life of people. They were also were most strongly linked to worse memory in young and middle-aged men during their working and career-building years.

1. It puts you over the daily sugar allowance

As a general guideline, doctors recommend limiting the fructose consumption to 25 grams per day, or even lower—15 grams per day—if you are insulin resistant, overweight, or have heart disease, diabetes, or any other disease stemming from insulin resistance. Meanwhile, just one can of Coke contains about 35 grams of sugar, which alone exceeds the daily recommended intake of fructose for good health.

But this is not to say that you need to cut junk food out of your life. Since an occasional binge of bad food – say on holiday, will not have too much of a negative effect if you generally eat a good diet and lead a healthy lifestyle, your focus needs to be on how to eat healthy on an everyday basis.

It would surprise you how a small change in lifestyle can help you lay off junk food. A good idea would be to plan meals ahead; it will make you less likely to pick up fast food and it means you can tailor your shopping list to fit. That way you know exactly what you’re buying.

Remember, live healthy, live free!