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. 2025 Jul 30:13:1600826.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1600826. eCollection 2025.

Fast food consumption and risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Jinke He  1 , Yingxue Wang  2 , Fangbin Weng  1
Affiliations

Fast food consumption and risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Jinke He et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a global health issue, with fast food consumption hypothesized as a risk factor. This meta-analysis aimed to explore the relationship between fast food intake and NAFLD.

Methods: This review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines. A comprehensive search was conducted across PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase from inception to February 28, 2025. A total of nine eligible observational studies involving 169,771 participants were included. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random-effects models.

Results: A higher consumption of fast food was significantly associated with a 55% increased risk of NAFLD (OR = 1.55, 95% CI: 1.51-1.59, p < 0.001, I2 = 15.6%). Moreover, fast food intake was linked to a 37% higher risk of obesity (OR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.27-1.49, p < 0.001, I2 = 54.2%), a key metabolic factor in NAFLD pathogenesis. Sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of these associations, with no significant evidence of publication bias.

Conclusion: Fast food consumption is positively associated with NAFLD and obesity. Heterogeneity highlights the need for standardized methods in future large-scale studies to validate these findings and inform preventive strategies.

Keywords: fast food; meta-analysis; non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; obesity; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA 2020 flow diagram.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forest plot of fast food consumption and NAFLD risk.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Sensitivity analysis for NAFLD risk.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Funnel plot for publication bias in NAFLD studies.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Forest plot of fast food consumption and obesity risk.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Sensitivity analysis for obesity risk.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Funnel plot for publication bias in obesity studies.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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