Nearly a week without cooking, young people stuck in fast food spiral

(Dan Tri) - Amidst the fast pace of life, meals with green vegetables are becoming increasingly rare, giving way to fast food. This convenient habit is putting young people's health at risk.

Startled to realize the last meal was 5 days ago

Ninh Hai Dang (22 years old, Hanoi ) is a senior student. According to the male student, his breakfast will be included with his lunch.

“I usually sleep until 9 p.m., then quickly eat a pack of noodles or sometimes some random snacks before going to school,” Dang shared.

This male student added that the frequency of eating home-cooked meals during the week can be counted on one hand. “I only eat 5-6 bowls of rice a week, the rest of the time I mainly go to restaurants to fill my stomach,” Dang confessed.

Sharing the reason why his boarding house is "lacking" home-cooked meals, Dang gave a simple explanation: "Lazy and convenient".

“I usually come home at odd hours, and it’s already late to cook. If you calculate the total time for simple cooking, quick meals, and washing dishes, it takes about an hour. Instead, I choose to eat out, which only takes 15 minutes,” Dang said.

Dang further explained that if he chooses to eat out, this student rarely chooses to eat rice but instead chooses attractive dishes such as vermicelli, noodles, glass noodles, and pho.

That day, Dang paused for a long time in front of a mukbang video (eating while filming) with fried chicken, spicy noodles...

In Dang's phone, photos of noodles, fried chicken, vermicelli, and pho dominate the family meal (Photo: NVCC).

And that very same evening, on Locket (social networking app), Dang's friends posted a photo of Dang "checking in" with a bowl of greasy noodles.

Looking through the photo album on his phone, Dang was shocked to realize that the last time he ate rice was 5 days ago.

The number of hasty photos taken before "devouring" noodles, chicken, vermicelli, and pho overwhelms the number of photos of home-cooked meals.

Dang said that sometimes he also "changes the mood" by having a few drinks with friends at a cheap roadside beer shop.

“In the summer, having cold beer, boiled peanuts, and some grilled skewers is easy to order and helps you avoid thinking too much,” Dang confessed.

Those scheduled drinking parties every weekend were the only way to help this student feel less lost in the hustle and bustle of life.

Although he admitted that he had been used to an unscientific eating routine for many years, Dang said he started jogging and playing badminton 3-4 times a week as a way to save himself.

However, Dang also understands that such efforts are still not enough to erase the consequences accumulated from the old lifestyle.

The journey from bed to kitchen is the hardest.

While Dang still has a few meals a week, for Tran Van Bang (24, Hai Phong), cooking for himself or having a proper meal is almost a luxury.

Bang's breakfast usually starts the day with a sandwich or simply a bun or cake from a familiar shop near the school.

Bang's lunch usually falls around 2-3pm, much later than the time when the body needs to recharge.

When asked why, Bang simply explained: "I eat bread in the morning, then after studying I rush off to do this and that, and only have time to sit down for lunch in the afternoon."

About half of the time during the week, he eats noodles instead of rice. The rest of the time, he eats fried rice, chicken rice, quick-ordered meals via apps, or eats at restaurants near school.

In a 7-day week, there are 5-6 afternoons when Bang starts his extra shift at 5:30. The rush makes it almost impossible for him to have dinner before going to work. On days when he gets home early, around 9 pm, he will stop by a roadside restaurant or order food to his room.

Since October last year, Bang has been eating fast food 6 times a week, sometimes fried chicken, sometimes pizza... In Bang's rented room, there are always a few plastic bags of food delivery and white styrofoam boxes that have not been cleaned yet.

“I can't remember the last time I cooked rice myself,” Bang confessed.

Of all the distances he has to travel each day, the shortest distance from bed to kitchen is the journey that Bang finds the most difficult.

Bang explained that he did not have enough strength to maintain any home-cooked meals in the current routine. For many months, meals were so frugal that even a bowl of soup or a plate of boiled vegetables had become a luxury for Bang.

When work is stressful, Bang often pampers himself with a cup of morning filter coffee or a cup of milk tea "full" of toppings to stay more awake and relieve pressure.

The rare times he returns to his hometown are the only times he gets to eat properly. According to Bang, that is the only place he can eat properly.

“Since Tet until now, I have been back to my hometown exactly 3 times. And those were the 3 most complete meals, with vegetables, soup, meat, and fish,” Bang said.

Poor diets, irregular schedules and frequent consumption of fried foods are silently taking their toll.

Bang said that recently he found it difficult to concentrate in class, often felt lethargic and sometimes had stomach aches, especially after late dinners or eating hastily after work.

When asked about health check-ups, Bang said: "The last time I went for a check-up was 2 years ago."

He didn’t have regular check-ups or monitor any indicators. “I knew it was necessary, but either I couldn’t find the time, or I only went to the doctor when things got worse,” Bang said.

A poor meal with few vegetables

Bang and Dang’s stories are just a slice of the larger picture. When asked why, most young people give familiar answers: the fast pace of modern life, a study schedule mixed with a part-time job, or simply a trade-off to secure a stable job.

In that cycle, Nguyen Thi Loan (25 years old, Hai Phong) chose the night shift at a convenience store, a job that brings a stable income but forces her to sacrifice sleep and decent meals.

Her normal day starts at midnight. When many people are fast asleep, she begins her shift which lasts from 12am to 8am.

For 8 hours, Loan did not have a proper meal. Instead, she had candy and snacks from the store.

“Working at night and eating a lot makes me sleepy. I just eat random things to stave off hunger,” Loan said. After finishing her shift at 9am, she returns to her room, draws the curtains, covers herself with a blanket and sleeps straight through until 3-4pm.

Waking up in a state of limbo, not hungry but not full either, Loan often chooses to fast. Sometimes it is just a pack of noodles or a piece of bread left over from the previous shift.

"Living alone makes me lazy to cook. If I buy groceries, they will spoil and I won't be able to finish them all, and I'm embarrassed to go shopping for every meal," Loan shared.

When eating out, Loan's favorite dishes are spicy noodles, fried chicken, and fried foods. Simply because they are quick, cheap, and easy to eat alone.

Loan's eating control is also unclear. Sometimes she fasts because she is afraid of gaining weight, and sometimes she eats continuously because she is hungry from the day before.

If she has a morning shift, she will make a cup of weak filter coffee to stay awake, but only drink it in moderation.

Loan doesn’t know how long she can maintain this lifestyle. She only knows that, day by day, she trades sleep, health, and even decent meals for a stable job and a steady income.

“Working the night shift pays a little more and is less competitive. But recently, seeing more and more young people getting seriously ill, I’ve started to feel scared. I’m afraid that this way of working will cost me dearly,” Loan admitted.

Loan said that when young, people often choose convenience over quality. But convenience is sometimes expensive, expensive in that it silently drains vitality, making Loan tired every day.

Doctors warn of the consequences of foods containing many additives and preservatives.

Sharing with Dan Tri , Dr. Nguyen Phoi Hien, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, branch 3, said that nowadays, modern life is increasingly hectic, choosing fast food to replace traditional meals has become popular, especially among young people.

In Vietnam, according to statistics from the National Institute of Nutrition in 2023, the rate of children and adolescents with diets exceeding the threshold of salt, sugar and fat is increasing, but they are severely deficient in vitamins A, D, iron and zinc. These factors are all essential for the functioning of the immune system and internal organs.

Fast food is often high in calories but low in micronutrients. Instant noodles, French fries, fried chicken, snacks… mainly provide refined carbohydrates, saturated fat, sodium and preservatives.

When completely replacing rice with fast food, the body will lack the necessary nutrients for metabolism.

In addition, most fast foods have very high salt (sodium) content to create rich flavor and preserve for a long time.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an adult should not consume more than 5g of salt per day. However, a pack of instant noodles can contain 1.8-2.5g of salt, not including the amount of salt from other dishes during the day.

When you consume too much salt, your kidneys have to work constantly to eliminate excess sodium from your body.

Young people's favorite drinks such as milk tea, soft drinks, energy drinks, etc. contain unusually high amounts of sugar, and also pose potential risks from additives, colorants, and artificial sweeteners.

Drinking too much sugar increases the risk of obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes. In addition, creamers and toppings in milk tea often contain inorganic phosphates that can cause an imbalance in calcium-phosphorus metabolism.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/gan-1-tuan-khong-nau-com-nguoi-tre-mac-ket-trong-vong-xoay-do-an-nhanh-20250820183258674.htm