MBSLynne--I'm with you. I know a lot who do it, thought. Some people make enough money that they don't   think too much about how they spend it(at least not until after it's all gone). Others just toss it onto the credit card and worry about it later, when it part of a larger debt.

Often, people are rushed, and don't take the time to plan and prepare meals, and even people who cook quite well save it for the weekends or for company. It's not just a money problem, fast food, carry-out(which you call takeaway), and chain-restaurant food has a notoriously high fat content(because fat can give taste to the tasteless), so it really is bad for you.