When a nighttime desire arises, nothing hits the spot like Taco Bell. The fast-food chain can offer some healthy options if you need to keep your diet under control, and as long as you eat carefully, you don’t have to worry about avoiding this favorite Tex-Mex. But when you plan to give yourself away, be sure to take care, as some really nasty side effects come along with eating at Taco Bell.
Taco Bell makes your tacos and burritos taste irresistible thanks to the high levels of sodium, fat and even sugar in certain foods. When taken to the extreme, these added ingredients can cause severe damage to your body. To find out what side effects we need to keep an eye on, we talked to a variety of nutritionists, doctors, nutritionists and other experts to define what we should expect to find when we go too much in this current classic fast food.
Read on to learn the side effects of eating Taco Bell can do to your body, and for more healthy tips, be sure to check out our list of the 7 healthiest foods to eat now.
Some of the more immediate effects that happen after we take a burrito or taco from Taco Bell occur inside our brain.
“Nitrates in canned meats and cheeses make depression worse,” Dr. Uma Naidoo, MD, Nutritional Psychiatrist and author ofThis is your brain in the food explains. “A fast-food diet is one that contains processed and ultra-processed ingredients, usually processed vegetable oils, added sodium, added sugars, as well as dyes, dyes, fillers and food preservatives. All are pro-inflammatory substances for the brain and the body. “
“Bad food choices feed bad insects in our gut, helping them to thrive and take control of good insects (designed to help and protect us),” continued Dr. Naidoo. “Over time, harmful insects cause inflammation, which can cause leakage in the intestine and neuroinflammation (brain). When it develops, it causes new mental health problems or exacerbates mental health symptoms that you may already be struggling with.”
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Even after eating a few tacos or burritos, you probably won’t be completely satisfied. This sensation comes as a direct result of the ingredients that make up a Taco Bell meal.
“There are few fresh whole foods with fiber and nutrients in fast foods, so they move quickly through your digestive system and you often feel hungry soon after,” says Dr. Naidoo.
This lack of fiber creates an endless spiral of hunger that can even lead to overeating, as found in a study published in The Nutrition Review. To find out which items on the chain are most likely to satiate you, check out Healthy Meals at Taco Bell That Are High-Protein.
When we eat a box of tacos, the increased feeling of depression is not the only thing to worry about.
“With a diet rich in harmful trans fats, added sugars and processed foods, the brain struggles to think clearly,” said Dr. Naidoo.
“Diets high in saturated fat can also have an effect on your cognitive abilities,” said Jay Cowin, registered nutritionist and director of formulations at ASYSTEM. “Brain inflammation and insulin resistance, caused by saturated fatty acids, have been implicated in cognitive deficits.”
Not all of Taco Bell’s menu items create side effects that affect the way our brain processes thought. Excess Taco bell can also result in brain aneurysms.
“Saturated fats increase the amount of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in the blood,” says Cowin. “High LDL increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. Saturated fat should not include more than 10% of your daily calories. The popular Cheesy Gordita Crunch Supreme has 11g of saturated fat.”
Make up for your chances of this deadly side effect and read about the foods you should eat in Foods that help prevent strokes after 40.
The same saturated fat that can cause stroke can also affect heart health.
“Many of the foods at Taco Bell are oversized and also fried, with cheese or contain meat,” says Dr. Lisa Young, PhD, RDN and author of Finally full, finally thin. “This combination contains a lot of calories and also saturated fat which, if consumed regularly over time, can cause obesity and heart disease.”
Young also mentions how “a diet high in saturated fat can increase health-damaging LDL cholesterol, thereby clogging the arteries that contribute to heart disease.”
When you need to follow a healthy eating plan, be sure to balance your Taco Bell runs with healthier eating options to get the best nutrition from both worlds. If you decide to go overboard, don’t be surprised if you encounter any of these horrible side effects.
Do you want to eat healthier when you wake up, instead of giving in and overdoing it? Here are the best and worst tacos from Taco Bell.