What's another name for junk food?

November 23, 2025 •

4 min read

The term 'junk food' was popularized in the 1970s, but the concept of low-nutrient, high-calorie food is much older. What's another name for junk food? In reality, there are many alternative labels, reflecting the variety of foods that fit this description, from fast food and sugary snacks to highly processed convenience meals.

Quick Summary

Diverse terms describe food high in calories, salt, or sugar but low in nutrients. Common alternatives include fast food, convenience food, processed food, and empty calories, with the more recent term 'ultra-processed food' offering a more specific scientific classification.

Key Points

Processed food: This is a broad term covering many items often called junk food, highlighting their industrial production process.
Empty calories: This term refers to foods that provide a lot of calories with very little nutritional benefit, like soda and candy.
Fast food and Convenience food: These names categorize items based on their quick availability and ease of preparation, which often overlap with junk food.
Ultra-processed food: A more specific scientific classification that describes foods with multiple industrial additives, often associated with negative health outcomes.
High in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS): A clinical term used in public health to precisely define foods based on their nutrient profile.
Comfort food or Guilty pleasures: These names highlight the emotional or psychological reasons people eat junk food, rather than its nutritional content.

A Closer Look at the Many Monikers of Unhealthy Eating

The phrase "junk food" is a broad, informal term that can encompass a wide variety of items. As awareness of nutrition and the impact of diet on health grows, more specific and descriptive terms have emerged. Understanding these alternative names and their nuances can provide a clearer picture of what we are actually eating.

The Rise of Processed Food

One of the most prevalent alternative names is "processed food". Most junk food falls under this category, as it involves industrial processes to transform raw ingredients into packaged, ready-to-eat products. This processing often adds high levels of sodium, sugar, and unhealthy fats while removing fiber and essential vitamins. This category is vast, including everything from chips and cookies to ready-to-eat meals and canned soups. The degree of processing is key, leading to further classifications like ultra-processed food.

Convenience Food and Fast Food

Two other very common synonyms are "convenience food" and "fast food." While not all convenience food is necessarily junk food, a significant portion fits the description. This category is defined by its ease of preparation and consumption, catering to busy lifestyles. Examples include pre-packaged dinners, frozen snacks, and instant noodles. "Fast food" refers to food served promptly at restaurants or food carts, and while some options can be healthy, many are notoriously high in fat, salt, and sugar. Think of burgers, fries, and deep-fried chicken, all of which are classic examples often cited in discussions of junk food.

The Scientific and Public Health Perspective

For health experts, more clinical terms are often used. "High in fat, salt, and sugar" (HFSS) food is a precise, nutrient-based definition used in public health policy to regulate advertising. This term focuses on the nutritional composition rather than the form of the food. Another important classification is "empty calories," which describes foods that provide a significant amount of energy (calories) but offer little to no nutritional value, such as vitamins, minerals, and protein. Sweetened carbonated beverages, candy, and snack cakes are prime examples of this. The concept of the "bliss point," the perfect combination of sugar, salt, and fat that makes a food irresistible, also helps explain why junk food is so appealing and easy to overeat.

The Psychological and Contextual Names

Beyond technical terms, there are also common cultural and psychological descriptors. "Comfort food" often describes the emotionally-driven consumption of specific meals, which are frequently junk food items like pizza or ice cream. The term "guilty pleasures" also captures the feeling of indulging in something enjoyable despite knowing it's not healthy. Meanwhile, "cheat meals" refer to a planned deviation from a strict diet, usually involving junk food. These names highlight the personal and emotional relationship people have with these foods.

A Comparison of Junk Food Synonyms


Synonym	Primary Focus	Key Examples	Context	Nutritional Accuracy
Processed Food	Method of creation	Chips, cookies, canned soup	Broad, industrial term	Can be highly variable, but often low
Fast Food	Service speed/style	Burgers, fries, tacos	Restaurant setting	Often low, variable by item
Convenience Food	Ease of use	Frozen meals, instant snacks	Home consumption	Highly variable, often low
Empty Calories	Nutritional content	Soda, candy, snack cakes	Clinical/scientific	Precise, purely low
Comfort Food	Emotional association	Pizza, mac and cheese	Personal/emotional	Variable, often low
Ultra-Processed Food	Degree of processing	Pre-packaged baked goods	Modern, scientific	Low

Why Do We Have So Many Names?

The proliferation of names for junk food reflects the complexity of our relationship with it. For many, calling a treat a "guilty pleasure" mitigates the negative connotation, while a public health official might need to use a term like HFSS to create enforceable policies. Furthermore, as food science has advanced, so too has our understanding of what makes food unhealthy, leading to more specific terms like ultra-processed food. The variety of names shows that the issue is not simply one type of food but a whole spectrum of products, industries, and social behaviors.

Conclusion

In conclusion, asking "what's another name for junk food?" reveals a rich vocabulary. From the industrial "processed food" to the more specific "ultra-processed food," and the policy-focused "HFSS," the alternatives reflect different aspects of the same issue. Whether you call it empty calories, convenience food, or even a guilty pleasure, the underlying fact is that these foods are defined by their low nutritional value and high content of unhealthy additives. Understanding these terms can help consumers make more informed decisions about their dietary habits.

For a deeper dive into the health implications, resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a great starting point.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Frequently Asked Questions

The most common and widely understood synonym for junk food is "processed food," as most items considered junk food have undergone some form of industrial processing.

While many fast-food items are considered junk food due to their high fat, salt, and sugar content, the categories are not identical. Some fast-food restaurants offer healthier options like salads, but the classic offerings like burgers and fries are typically considered junk food.

Empty calories is a term for foods and beverages that provide a significant amount of energy (calories) but contain very few or no beneficial nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, and protein.

'Ultra-processed food' is a more specific term used in nutrition science that provides more detail on how a food is made, including the use of industrial ingredients and additives. This level of detail helps link certain manufacturing practices to negative health outcomes.

Yes, often. While 'comfort food' is a psychological descriptor based on emotional satisfaction, many of the foods that fall into this category—like macaroni and cheese, pizza, or ice cream—are also high in fat, salt, or sugar and low in nutrients, aligning with the definition of junk food.

Examples include instant noodles, pre-packaged snack cakes, frozen pizzas, and microwaveable meals. These items are quick and easy to prepare but are often high in sodium, fat, and preservatives.

They are contextual synonyms. While they describe the act of consuming junk food, they focus on the emotional or dietary context rather than the food's physical properties. They are used to talk about junk food, but aren't purely descriptive labels for the food itself.