McDonald’s is one of the most well-known fast-food restaurants in the world, and the company serves over 68 million customers each day!
If you’ve been asking why is McDonald’s so addictive, you’ve come to the right place since we’re going to tell you several reasons why and more so keep reading!
Why Is McDonald’s So Addictive?
McDonald’s is so addictive because the food contains high levels of fat, sugar, and salt, which releases dopamine and makes us feel good. Furthermore, McDonald’s is associated with positive memories and feelings from childhood, which we want to recreate in our adulthood. In addition, MSG is an ingredient that is addictive and also leaves us feeling unsatiated.
There are several other reasons why McDonald’s is so addictive, so read on below to learn more!
1. Lots Of Sugar
The biggest reason why McDonald’s is so addictive is that almost every item on the menu contains sugar, which is highly addictive.
Furthermore, the hamburger buns, French fries, ketchup, and virtually all drinks and desserts at McDonald’s contain sugar, and some items like the smoothies contain higher sugar content than Coca-Cola.
Our body craves sugar, and if we don’t get sugar, then we suffer through the same types of withdrawal symptoms as someone suffering from drug addiction.
Notably, various studies have shown that rats will begin binge eating when they have access to sugar water for a few weeks, begin eating twice their previous intake, and will choose sugar water over normal food.
In addition to that, when the rats didn’t have sugar, they exhibited signs of drug withdrawal, including teeth chattering, depression, anxiety, lethargy, and body tremors.
2. Value Menu Helps Entice Customers
McDonald’s has an incredible value menu for customers, including $1, $2, and $3 menu sections which entice people to purchase their products.
Additionally, your brain will weigh out the cost vs. benefit analysis, and oftentimes, the value menu makes spending money at McDonald’s much easier.
Furthermore, seeing items on the value menu or seeing a promotional deal, such as 2 for $6, lessens the pain associated with spending money.
3. McDonald’s Food Offers Nostalgia & Brings Back Fond Memories
McDonald’s is so addictive in part because we’ve created positive associations with the food over the years, and it’ll bring back the nostalgia of our past or childhood.
Furthermore, certain foods at McDonald’s, such as the fries, McNuggets, and Happy Meal, have been favorites among children, so as an adult, we find ourselves going back to relive those happy memories.
4. Salt Activates Dopamine Receptors in Brain
McDonald’s fries are iconic and one of the most beloved fast-food items of all time, but did you know McDonald’s food, such as fries, is addictive because of the salt content?
Furthermore, when you are eating salty foods, your brain is triggered by releasing dopamine into your body.
Additionally, dopamine is the chemical in the brain that gives us feelings of both satisfaction and pleasure, and it’s responsible for addictions of all kinds.
5. MSG Leaves You Feeling Unsatiated & Increases Appetite
McDonald’s food contains MSG, which is Monosodium glutamate, and this flavor enhancer leaves you feeling unsatiated.
However, it’s the hydrolyzing process of both wheat and milk that’s used for McDonald’s foods that creates the MSG in the first place.
Furthermore, studies have shown that rats that were given MSG increased their intake of food by 40%, which is further proof that MSG creates feelings of a lack of satiation.
6. McDonald’s Branding
Our brains love branding, and the branding itself, such as the jingle and the famous arches, helps create an addiction.
Subsequently, it’s the consistent imagery and experience with McDonald’s that creates a positive feeling about the fast-food restaurant and leads us to crave the food.
7. Fatty Foods Can Cause an Addiction
Another reason why McDonald’s is so addictive is because of the fat contained in its products, including the natural beef flavoring found in the fries.
Additionally, a study using rats showed that when the rats were given high-calorie, high-fat foods, the brain responded in a way closely resembling other strong addictions.
On top of that, the rats given high-fat foods started to eat compulsively, which resembled a drug addiction.
8. Fast Food Quickness is Addictive
McDonald’s is a fast-food restaurant that cooks your food within minutes, and the fact that you can receive a hot meal anytime you want is addictive.
Additionally, the fact that McDonald’s offers a convenient way of getting food quickly, including offering drive-thru windows and delivery through GrubHub, is an addicting quality.
Furthermore, you crave not only the food but the ability to get the food without waiting, so the speed of the process itself offers instant gratification.
9. Casein
When talking about fast-food items, casein is one of the protein compounds that is addictive and leads to people being addicted without even knowing.
Further, casein is dubbed as the food version of nicotine because once you’ve had it, your body begins craving it, and it comes in multiple forms.
Additionally, casein is found naturally in milk, but it’s concentrated and refined in the fast-food industry to make milk solid concentrate, and McDonald’s uses a lot of milk derivatives.
In addition to that, casein is found in French fries, real and fake cheese, milkshakes, hamburger buns, baked goods, salad dressings, sausage, and even whipped cream.
10. Fast Food Contains Chemicals That Create an Abusive Cycle
Lastly, the various chemicals found in McDonald’s and other fast food help create an abusive cycle in your brain that’s hard to break, just like drug addiction.
Furthermore, processed foods made from refined sugars, refined oils, and refined wheat taste great when you’re eating them, such as French fries, but you end up not being able to stop.
To know more about McDonald’s, you can also see our posts on where McDonald’s potatoes come from, why you crave McDonald’s, and why is McDonald’s so good.
