Frequent consumption of meals prepared away from home associated with an increased risk of death

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/e-fco032321.php

 

News Release 25-Mar-2021
Very frequent consumption (two meals or more per day) of meals prepared away from home is significantly associated with increased risk of all-cause mortality, reports a new study in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Elsevier

 

Dining out is a popular activity worldwide, but there has been little research into its association with health outcomes. Investigators looked at the association between eating out and risk of death and concluded that eating out very frequently is significantly associated with an increased risk of all-cause death, which warrants further investigation. Their results appear in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, published by Elsevier.

Eating out is a popular activity. The US Department of Agriculture recently estimated that Americans' daily energy intake from food away from home increased from 17 percent in 1977-1978 to 34 percent in 2011-2012. At the same time, the number of restaurants has grown steadily, and restaurant-industry sales are forecasted to increase significantly.

Although some restaurants provide high-quality foods, the dietary quality for meals away from home, especially from fast-food chains, is usually lower compared with meals cooked at home. Evidence has shown that meals away from home tend to be higher in energy density, fat, and sodium, but lower in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and protective nutrients such as dietary fiber and antioxidants.


•••••