6 Reasons Why I Had to Break Up With Taco Bell

For a long time, Taco Bell was an easy go-to when I needed a quick dinner. A Baja Blast and a couple of crunchy tacos felt like a simple little treat at the end of a busy day. For years, it barely required a second thought.

Lately, though, I have found myself looking at Taco Bell a little differently. The more I learn about what goes into the food and how it affects the body, the harder it is to ignore the downsides. Beyond the familiar digestive complaints, there are concerns about sodium levels, ingredient quality, and even how some menu items can leave you feeling sluggish or down afterward.

It is not just about one bad meal here or there. When you start paying closer attention, there is a lot to think about. Take a look through this list and you may find yourself rethinking that Taco Bell run, too.

As with many fast-food restaurants, the food at Taco Bell has too much sodium. Some of the highest-sodium items on the Taco Bell menu contain over 1,200 milligrams of sodium per serving. Excessive sodium intake can be detrimental to your health. Too much sodium can affect the blood and lead to high blood pressure, which can lead to death. Going overboard on sodium can also negatively impact your sleep, cause stomach cancer, and lead to obesity, among other issues.

Generally, the larger the item you have at Taco Bell, the more sodium is involved. The breakfast Crunchwrap meals contain over half of the recommended daily sodium limit in a single serving. Get a beefy 5-layer burrito and you'll be consuming 1,290 mg of sodium. Even sticking to only the nacho fries with cheese sauce will have you at about 1,060 mg of sodium. Then, if you pair that with just about anything else on the menu, you'll likely be at your day's quota.

They say you should not eat your feelings, and you certainly shouldn't eat them here. There's a reason why you shouldn't consume Taco Bell or any fast food regularly. For starters, there are trans fats and heavy ingredients that may taste good at the time. However, when you finish the meal, you likely feel sluggish and overly full. Experience that every day, and you'll feel pretty bad. However, there's also a more scientific reason.

Yes, eating here often can lead to depression, and it's not just the fullness and becoming overweight. There are other factors at play. Previously, many of the meats and cheeses included nitrates, food colorants, and preservatives. However, Taco Bell has removed artificial flavors, colors, and many preservatives from most menu items as of 2025. Overdoing it with artificial ingredients can lead to a condition called neuroinflammation in the brain, which can lead to other mental health issues, including depression.

Again, this is an issue that comes with many types of fast food, but you're not doing yourself any favors at Taco Bell when it comes to caloric consumption. You need to be careful about how much you eat every day. The typical result is becoming overweight. Weighing too much can lead to other health conditions, including heart disease, cancer, and more.

So, how many calories are in the food? Let's take a look. A serving of Taco Bell's Bell Sauce Dip Cup has 210 calories, but most Taco Bell sauces have little to no calories per packet. The large nacho fries have 470 calories. A crunchy taco has 170 calories. The Doritos Cheese Gordita Crunch has 490 calories. A black bean grilled cheese burrito has 690 calories. It may seem like some of these don't have too many calories. However, consider the fact that most people at Taco Bell get a meal that includes several items instead of just a single taco.

After eating at Taco Bell, you may sometimes feel full or sluggish, but that feeling won't last forever. Instead, you may find that you're hungry again soon after your meal. Part of that is blamed on how the food is made. Many of the meals don't include the fiber or nutrients that you need to remain full. As a result, the food moves quickly through the digestive system and is flushed out.

There are several issues with not feeling full after a large meal. For starters, you're paying money for the meal, and you're not getting much out of it. You're certainly not giving your body what it needs. The other issue is that if you're hungry again, you may go back for more, and it's a cycle that may never end. The result could be that you become overweight and experience health issues.

You may not immediately think of sugar when you think of Taco Bell, but rest assured that there's a lot of sugar in the meals. Drink a soda with your meal, and you'll be drinking a lot of sugar. Many of the food items have sugar as well. What are the risks of consuming too much sugar? Excess sugar turns into stored fat, which can lead to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, tooth decay, and acne. Plus, it can weaken your immune system, so you get sick more often.

Many of the items that you would expect are loaded with sugar. The Cinnabon Delights have 20 grams of sugar. Other savory items, like the Crunchwrap Supreme, have about 21 grams of fat. However, the drinks are loaded with sugar. A Midnight Cherry Freeze has 34 grams of sugar, the Mountain Dew Baja Blast has 51 grams of sugar, and the low-fat milk has 9 grams of sugar. Just be cautious of the drink size you get. You don't need to get the largest size. You probably won't finish it anyway.

Many menu items at Taco Bell should be avoided. One of them, which is mentioned consistently on lists like this, is the Doritos Locos Taco. These may seem like a fun novelty, but they can be unhealthy. The shells previously contained artificial colors, but Taco Bell has removed most artificial flavors and colors from its menu as of 2025.

Another of the menu items to avoid is the chicken quesadilla. In addition to having a lot of sodium and saturated fat, the ingredients are also very dangerous. Some food additives used as dough conditioners have been controversial, but there is no direct evidence that those used in Taco Bell's chicken quesadilla cause cancer or thyroid issues. It's not good, so you may want to avoid them.