Food fright?

Burgers, fries, and soda may be cheap, tasty, and convenient--but can they sabotage your health?

I like to eat at Wendy's, McDonald's, and Burger King," says 18-year-old James Ross of Kyle, Texas. "If I'm real hungry I'll go to Wendy's--the portions are bigger. But I'd rather go to McDonald's. Their burgers taste better. They're greasier."

Fat-dripping burgers, oil-soaked french fries, and sugar-shock sodas are the all-American fast-food fix--and a mainstay for 25 percent of the U.S. population each day. In fact, the typical American chows down three burgers and four orders of french fries per week, claims Eric Schlosser, author of the best-selling book Fast Food Nation. The big downside: Studies show a diet sky-high in fat and calories can lead to obesity (above normal weight for one's height), which in turn fosters diseases like diabetes (a blood sugar disorder) and heart disease. Is America's obsession with fast food killing us? Can science make food-on-the-go healthier?

BURGER ALARM

While high-fat burgers may pose a health hazard, they can harbor a more dangerous ingredient: In 1993, a tiny bacterium (single-celled organism) called Escherichia coli 0157:H7--or E. coli--was found in undercooked burgers at Jack in the Box restaurants, leaving 700 customers sick--killing 4 customers and hospitalizing 195 others. Last year in Milwaukee, Wis., a 3-year-old girl died in a similar outbreak that sickened 500 patrons at Sizzler restaurants.

E. coli 0157:H7 is only one of hundreds of strains of E. coli bacteria. While most prove harmless, this strain produces a toxin that can trigger serious illness in humans. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that more than 73,000 Americans are infected with E. coli 0157:H7 each year--and at least 60 die.

The bacteria can thrive in a cow's feces and its intestines (coiled tubes that absorb nutrients from food). If meat is contaminated with E. coli during slaughter, then handled improperly, the bacteria can wind up in ground beef. Today's food-processing methods may only increase your odds of infection: "Thirty years ago, hamburger was ground at a butcher shop or local supermarket, and made from one or two animals," says Schlosser. "Now a fast-food burger most likely contains pieces of dozens, if not hundreds, of different animals, often from different countries."

E. coli bacteria in tainted burger meat make their way through human intestines, where they multiply and spawn a toxin called shiga. Victims experience symptoms such as bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, vomiting, and fever; the symptoms usually last from 5 to 10 days. In rare cases the toxin causes hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a life-threatening illness in which the kidneys, two organs in the abdomen that siphon waste products from blood, shut down.

To eradicate tainted ground beef before it leaves a processing plant, some meat producers now zap beef with low-level radiation, or high-energy rays emitted when elements like hydrogen decay. The process--called irradiation --destroys E. coli's bacterial DNA (genetic material). While several studies show that irradiation doesn't make meat radioactive, some health experts fear irradiation can strip foods of vital nutrients.

Farmland National Beef, one of the country's largest beef processors, has teamed up with scientists at California State Polytechnic University to try to conquer the killer bacteria with a natural protein found in cow's milk called lactoferrin. "Lactoferrin is sprayed onto the meat and releases any bacteria that might be firmly attached to its surface," says Eric Hale, vice president of technology development at Farmland.

Should E. coli 0157:H7-contaminated ground beef escape a processing plant and end up in a fast-food restaurant, the only way to kill the toxin is to thoroughly cook a burger--until it reaches an internal temperature of 71 [degrees] C (160 [degrees] F). However, even a well-done burger isn't a guarantee against infection. "When you go to a fast-food restaurant, you're dependent on food being handled properly. Your health is in the hands of the person cooking the burger," says David Acheson, associate professor of medicine at Tufts University in Boston, Mass. Still hungry?

THE DISH ON FRIES

This year alone, Americans will shell out more than $110 billion on fast food. Tops on the menu? French fries, the most frequently ordered food at U.S. restaurants--the average American downs a whopping 30 pounds each year! "I love french fries," says Nicole Greenbaum, 18, of Potomac, Md., who typically eats four orders a week. "They're so tasty."

America's favorite crispy treats are culled from ordinary baking potatoes like the Idaho russet, which is composed of about 80 percent water. To transform a common spud into a mouthwatering fry, fast-food joints replace almost all the water with fat.

When a cook dunks a basket of frozen fries into a vat of sizzling oil--usually for about three minutes--the heat of the oil converts the water into steam. Inside the fry, the steam softens and swells hard, grainy particles of starch--complex sugar molecules that provide the body with energy--to create a moist, fluffy interior. Meanwhile, the hot oil sears the fry's outside, and gives it a crispy golden-brown coating.

Bathing fries in fatty oil is what creates their irresistible taste: Fat has a buttery texture and satisfies the appetite (one gram packs nine calories, compared with four calories found in one gram of protein or carbohydrates). But gobble too much fat--more than 30 percent of your daily calories--and "you wind up getting more energy than you need," says Burt Ensley, president of New Cycle Therapy in Hillside, N.J. "It doesn't make you able to leap tall buildings. Instead, the body stores the extra energy as fat cells--inside your thighs, between your muscles, and around your stomach." (See "Four Fat Rules," SW 1/22/01.)

Today, scientists are working to design healthier frying oils. K.C. Hayes, professor of biology and nutrition at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., developed Appetize, an oil made of beef tallow (cow fat), which is stripped of artery-clogging cholesterol, a substance that transports fat throughout the body. Unlike most oils used by fast-food chains, Appetize contains no trans-fat, a type of fat linked to heart disease, the number one cause of death in the U.S. "Appetize holds heat better than other oils and sears the outside of the french fry faster, so it doesn't absorb as much fat," says Hayes. But will Americans swallow a more fit fry? Stay tuned.

SODA LOWDOWN

Whether you're craving a burger or some fries, if you're like most teens you'll wash them down with an icy cold soda. In fact, American kids drink twice as much soda today as they did 25 years ago. The average 12-ounce soda contains a staggering 10 teaspoons of sugar. But behind all the bubbles, the skinny on soda isn't so sweet. New research suggests that one or more sugary drinks per day gives a child a 60 percent greater chance of becoming obese.

"Sugar is easily turned into fat," says Burt Ensley. "Soda is a very high source of calories." Heavy soda drinkers can also expect to make plenty of visits to the dentist. Bacteria in the mouth metabolize (use for energy) sugar and produce acids, which cause cavities. Soda also robs the body of calcium, a nutrient essential for strong bones. "Calcium builds bone mass during the adolescent years," says Henry Mallek, author of The New Longevity Diet. "The best source of calcium is milk. Instead, teens are substituting milk with soda, which has no calcium."

FAST-FOOD TOLL

A steady diet of burgers, fries, and soda may seem delectable, but it won't nourish your body with the vitamins and minerals you need to stay healthy. "Fast food lacks many important nutrients," says Therese Franzese, director of nutrition at the Peninsula Spa and Health Club in New York City. "You can't see your arteries and cells crying out for nourishment. You may be fine now, but it will catch up with you eventually."

Brussels sprouts, anyone?

Facts to Feed on

* This year Americans will spend
more than $110 billion on fast
food, compared with $6 billion in
1970. That's more than they spend
on movies, books, magazines,
videos, and music combined.

* Each year the cattle-feed
industry buys millions of dead cats
and dogs from animal shelters.
They're fed to cattle, along with
dead ducks, geese, elk, and deer.

* The artificial strawberry flavor
used in a Burger King strawberry
milkshake contains more than
46 chemical ingredients.

* To ensure perfect crispness,
food scientists use a "texture
analyzer." This mechanical mouth
measures a french fry's physical
properties: for example, density,
breaking point, springback, and
juiciness.
Burger BREAKDOWN

What's the skinny on the amount of fat and calories
found in popular fast-food burgers? Dig into this
chart to find out. Which burger packs the most fat?
Which has the most calories ?

BURGER TYPE         TOTAL    %DAILY     SATURATED   CALORIES
                     FAT     VALUE(*)      FAT
                   (grams)               (grams)

BURGER KING          39        60           12        680
Whopper (9.8 oz)

McDONALD'S           34        52           11        590
Big Mac (7.6 oz)

WENDY'S              19        29            7        410
Classic Single
with Everything
(7.7 oz)

HARDEE'S             43        66           14        660
All-Star (bacon)
(9.4 oz)

(*) Total percentage of fat intake recommended by the FDA.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Did You Know?

* American kids now get about one quarter of their total vegetable servings in the form of potato chips or french fries.

* The average 12- to 19-year-old soda drinker consumes 868 cans of soda a year.

* In the past 40 years, soda bottles and cans have swelled from 6 1/2 ounces to 12 ounces to 20 ounces. Back in the 1950s, Coke's "family size" bottle was merely 26 ounces.

Cross-Curricular Connection

History: Research and report on the origins of fast-food restaurants in the U.S. How have they impacted American life?

National Science Education Standards

Grades 5-8: personal health * risk and benefits * structure and function in living systems

Grades 9-12: personal and community health * natural and human-induced hazards * matter, energy, and organization in living systems

Resources

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2001

"Quick Bites," Consumer Reports, March 2001, pp. 44-47

"The Trouble with Fries," by Malcolm Gladwell, The New Yorker, March 5, 2001, pp. 52-57

Name: --

Directions: Read our story on fast food, then write a paragraph using the vocabulary words provided below.

1. You're a health inspector. Write a statement on why you've decided to temporarily close down a burger restaurant. (E. coli, 71 [degrees] C, cow's feces, ground beef)

2. Share your knowledge on the health risks of soda with a sibling or neighbor. (metabolize, teaspoons, sugar, cavities, obese)

Answers will vary but should include the following points.

1. E. coli bacteria can thrive in cow's feces or intestines. If mishandled meat is contaminated at slaughter, the bacteria could wind up in ground beef for burgers. Thoroughly cooking a burger to an internal temperature of 71 [degrees] C destroys most toxins. However, even a well-done burger isn't an absolute guarantee against infection.

2. The average 12-ounce soda contains 10 teaspoons of sugar. Bacteria in the mouth metabolize sugar and produce acids, which cause cavities. Sugar is easily turned into fat. Studies suggest a second soda per day gives a child a 60 percent greater risk of becoming obese.