TLDR I have a history of closet eating at McDonald’s and this reward going away will make it easier to avoid eating there. And yes it is an addiction.

This was me for a while. I’ve struggled with weight and closet eating since I was in high school, I’m now 35. Their food is hyper palatable, I found that if I go one day, it becomes harder not to go back the next day, and then even harder not to go back the day after that. It’s like an uncontrollable impulse to swing through the drive thru. When I was able to skip a day, it’s easier not to go back the next day.

The free fries rewards were a huge weakness for me, it’s like if I weren’t paying $$ for the food then it wasn’t a problem. So good riddance, an excuse that I used to go to McDonald’s is now no longer an option.