British Teen Hospitalized After 15 Year McNugget "Addiction"

Last night, there were shocking news reports from U.K. publications The Sun and The Daily Mail . A seventeen-year old factory worker from Birmingham, England named Stacey Irvine was reportedly hospitalized after collapsing due to breathing complications. Doctors soon discovered that Ms. Irvine had nearly exclusively eaten McDonalds Chicken McNuggets since she was two years old. Stacey claims to have "never tasted fresh fruit or vegetables".



Because of her horrible diet, Irvine has anemia and vast nutrient deficiencies. Symptoms of anemia, a lack of healthy red blood cells, include dizziness and shortness of breath; this may be why Stacey collapsed.
The principle nutrients of chicken nuggets, the main component of all of Stacey Irvine's meals, are calories, fat, protein, carbohydrates, sodium, and cholesterol. Here is a breakdown of the nutrition of 9-piece McNuggets according the McDonalds themselves:

1. Calories: A 9-nugget portion contains approximately 375 calories. Assuming Stacey ate this portion size three times a day, she consumed about 1125 calories. This is nearly 57% of her recommended daily intake of calories.
2. Fat: McDonalds reports 21g, or about 31% of her recommended daily intake. Again, assuming 27 nuggets, that is a whopping 93% at 63g.
3. Protein: Purely considering the amount of protein, McNuggets are decent. At 20g per 9-piece portion, three times a day, these nuggets constitute 81% of the daily value for an average woman. However, when you put into consideration that all of this protein is coming from a single source, you realize that Stacey is deprived of other kinds of protein such as plant protein, which contain unique amino acids.
4. Carbohydrates: The carb count is 30g. This is a paltry 11% of the GDA.
5. Sodium: 0.9g and 18% of the daily value. For three meals, that's 2.7g(2700mg), and 54% of the daily value.
6. Cholestrol: The U.K. site does not provide cholestrol information. The U.S. site indicates that a 10-piece portion contains 65mg, or 22% of the RDV. Multiplied by a factor of three, it is 195mg and 66% of the RDV.