Although it might be best to steer clear of certain fast-food restaurants, there are others that can really help you on whichever health journey you're taking. According to Amy Shapiro MS, RD, and member of our Medical Expert Board, the healthiest fast-food restaurant you can visit is Chipotle Mexican Grill.
The result: McDonald's wins
While chicken is an obvious Men's Health staple, KFC's reliance on greasy oils and subsequent sky-high calorific content makes Maccy's an unlikely victor.
Subway. Subway has established themselves as the go-to place for healthier fast food options. They have many lower calorie sub options available and their nutritional information is readily available. Customers can pile on as many veggies on their subs as they want.
Thai cuisine often tops the list of healthy takeaways. Unlike Chinese food, which is often high in sugar and salt, Thai cooking uses fresh herbs and spices to add flavour, while also maintaining a focus on fresh vegetables and good quality meat - meaning dishes are generally lower in calories and fat.
KFC was the most calorific the fast-food chain on the list, with an average of 987 calories per meal offered. Burger King, McDonald's and Subway were around 700kcal.
The dishes of KFC are mostly deep-fried and are made using tons of oil. So, the regular consumption of KFC can make you gain weight. Therefore, continuous consumption of fast food, chicken, and meat that too with excess oil can lead to heart and fat-related issues.
Pizza, while a classic favourite, is often high in fat and salt, and some popular garlic and herb dipping sauces contain almost 700 calories! Chinese fried rice is another popular option, but this is often high in calories and salt. Swap it for boiled rice for a healthier meal.
Subway offers a better variety of healthy meal options than many other fast food restaurants. In general, Subway's meals are low in sugar and a decent source of fiber and protein, however, many are also loaded with fat and sodium.
Well, the subway is not very healthy for weight loss, but you can eat it as your cheat meal. Also, as subway serves everything as per your choice, you can, however, choose to make it healthy with fewer calories and fat or amongst their Fresh Fit Menu.
McDonald's isn't known to be a healthy restaurant, but they do have some healthier things on the menu than just burgers and fries. If you fancy a Maccies, but don't want to eat too unhealthily, there is a way to do it, but it probably wouldn't be a recognisable balanced 'meal'.
For the healthiest dish at KFC, opt for the grilled chicken wings, which deliver 70 calories per wing thanks to the cooking method.
Across all the three chosen fast-food chains Burger King is the lowest for all four content averages (calories, fat, sugars, and salt). Chewsy found that out of the three selected fast-food chains, KFC exceeds (20.3 grams) the daily sugar intake of children between the ages of four and six (19 grams) by 6.8 per cent.
TAKEAWAY fans were amazed when a BBC documentary showed that there's less than 500 calories in a KFC meal – compared to a belly-busting 1,900 calories in a Domino's pizza.
Fish & Chips on average have 9.42 grams of fat per 100 grams, while the average pizza has 11, chicken korma 15.5 and a donner kebab a whopping 16.2. In terms of calories, fish and chips have 595 in an average portion, an average pizza has 871, chicken korma 910 and a donner kebab 924.
I'd suggest that once a week should be your maximum, but it will come as no surprise that the answer depends on what you're ordering, where from and how much you're eating. For instance, an American Hot from Pizza Express clocks 1,010 calories, but swap it for the light version and you'll slash that to 517.
Looking at the overall meal, the Subway meal in terms of protein and sugar was slightly healthier than McDonald's and provided more vegetables, however it was higher in sodium. Remember both meals contributed the same total number of calories but on top of that, it was a large amount of calories.
Burger King Wins
With 720 milligrams of sodium, it's also a better choice when it comes to sodium content. The Burger King cheeseburger contains more protein than McDonald's, as well, with 22 grams, which is almost half of the 46 grams of protein women need each day and 40 percent of the 56 grams men require every day.