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https://studentshare.org/health-sciences-medicine/1454434-which-is-healthier-mcdonalds-or-burger-king.
McDonald’s is Healthier than Burger King Neither McDonald’s nor Burger King is recommendable for someone who wants to consume a healthy diet, as both are junk/fast food restaurants. However, by comparing the nutritional value of the products of both, one can estimate which one is the healthier of the two. “Nutrition facts can be found online at burgerking.com, [and] mcdonalds.com” (Stoddard, 2010). This essay compares the nutritional value of some food items that make part of the menu of both the restaurants to establish the healthier restaurant between McDonald’s and Burger King.
The fundamental criterion of selection of a fast food restaurant for the French fries is generally taste. While the French fires at both McDonald’s and Burger King taste almost equally good, they differ in their nutritional value. According to Morse (2007), the medium order of French fries at the Burger King contains up to 400 calories, 5 grams of proteins, 43 grams of carbohydrates, and 20 grams of fat whereas the medium order of French fries offered by McDonald’s consists of 380 calories, 2 grams of proteins, 30 grams of carbohydrates, and 13 grams of fat.
Comparison of the nutritional value of both items suggests that while the French fries offered at Burger King slightly exceed those offered at McDonald’s in terms of protein count, the amount of calories, carbohydrates, and fat is considerably higher in the former as compared to the latter. Overall, considering all four variables, French fries of McDonald’s are healthier as compared to those of Burger King. Cheeseburgers are one of the all-time-favorite food items offered at both McDonald’s and Burger King and comparison would be incomplete unless their nutritional values are compared.
A vast majority of customers opt for cheeseburgers at both the restaurants. The cheeseburgers offered at Burger King have 360 calories, protein equal to 6 grams, 63 grams of carbohydrates, and the fat content is 25 grams whereas the cheeseburgers available at McDonald’s contain up to 300 calories in total, 15 grams of proteins, 33 grams of carbohydrates, and only 12 grams of fat (Morse, 2007). Comparison of the two suggests that the cheeseburgers offered at McDonald’s are way healthier than those available at Burger King by all means.
While the calorie count of cheeseburgers of McDonald’s is less than that of Burger King by 60, the content of carbohydrates and fat is almost half that of the cheeseburgers of Burger King. Not just this, the amount of protein in the McDonald’s cheeseburgers is more than double that of the cheeseburgers of Burger King. Thus, McDonald’s cheeseburgers are too healthy to be compared with Burger King’s cheeseburgers. Big Mac and Whopper are the signature food items of McDonald’s and Burger King respectively.
On one hand, the Whopper consists of 670 calories, 27 grams of protein, carbohydrates up to 51 grams, and the fat content of 39 grams. On the other hand, the calorie count of Big Mac is 540, whereas the amount of protein, carbohydrates, and fat in Big Mac is 25 grams, 45 grams, and 29 grams respectively (Morse, 2007). Comparison of Whopper and Big Mac suggests that while the former is higher in the protein content than the latter by only 2 grams, Whopper is much higher in the calorie count, carbohydrate and fat content than Big Mac.
If all four variables are taken into consideration, Big Mac wins over Whopper. Grilled chicken sandwiches are also quite popular at both McDonald’s and Burger King. Burger King offers the Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich which consists of 400 calories, 36 grams of protein, 49 grams of carbohydrates, and 7 grams of fat whereas the calorie count of McDonald’s Premium Classic Grilled Chicken sandwich is 420, its protein content is 32 grams, carbohydrate content is 51 grams, and fat content is 10 grams (Morse, 2007).
Comparison of the two suggests that the Tendergrill Chicken sandwich is not only higher in protein content, but also lower in the content of carbohydrates and fat as well as the calorie count, thus making Burger King a healthier option as compared to McDonald’s. Concluding, most of the food items available at McDonald’s are healthier than those of Burger King. While the Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich of Burger King is slightly healthier than the Grilled Chicken Sandwich of McDonald’s, McDonald’s Frenc h fries, cheeseburgers, and Big Mac are way healthier than French fries, cheeseburgers, and Whopper of Burger King.
In addition, McDonald’s innovations over the years far outnumber those of Burger King (Sheridan, 2012). Hence, McDonald’s is healthier than Burger King. McDonald’s shares its story in these words, “It started with you. Moms and dads are trying hard to get their kids to be more nutrition-minded. We listened…” (McDonald’s, 2010). References: McDonald’s. (2012). Nutrition. Retrieved from http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html. Morse, J. (2007). Which is Healthier: McDonald's or Burger King?
Retrieved from http://voices.yahoo.com/which-healthier-mcdonalds-burger-king-745485.html?cat=51. Sheridan, M. (2012). 7 Reasons Why McDonald’s Crushes Burger King Year After Year After Year. Retrieved from http://www.thesaleslion.com/reasons-mcdonalds-crushes-beats-burger-king- year/. Stoddard, A. L. (2010, Mar. 10). Eat Healthy at Burger King, McDonald's, Wendy's. Retrieved from http://suite101.com/article/eat-healthy-at-mcdonalds-wendys-burger-king-a211536.
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