Fat and Calorie Content of Fast Food and a Home-Cooked Meal

Updated February 21, 2017 | Factmonster Staff

Eating fast food once in a while won’t hurt you, but too much of it can cause serious problems. Most fast food contains too many calories, salt and artery-clogging cholesterol to eat every day, or even once a week. Here’s a look at how many calories and grams of fat are packed into fast food. Keep in mind that kids ages 7 to 12 should eat about 2,200 calories a day.

Food CaloriesFat
McDonald’s Big Mac 56333 grams
Medium-sized McDonald’s French fries 38420
Medium-sized McDonald’s vanilla shake 733 21
Total for one meal1,680 calories74 grams
   
Burger King Whopper with cheese79048
Medium-sized Burger King French fries 38720
Medium-sized Burger King vanilla shake66735
Total for one meal1,844 calories103 grams
   
Compare that to a meal prepared at home:
One-half of a roasted chicken breast 1423 grams
Medium-sized baked white potato1300
Half a cup of green peas670
8-ounce glass of 1% milk1023
1 cup of unsweetened applesauce105 0
Total for one meal 546 5 grams
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