LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG
Allen Ang, Luigi Co, Cesar Padre, Jr.,
James Sy, Gene Tan,
EMTECH S15
allenleeang@yahoo.com, luigi_co_8_89@yahoo.com, cesar_padre@yahoo.com
jamesvictorsy@yahoo.com, genestanly@yahoo.com
De La Salle University, Manila
ABSTRACT
"Because of the way people work these days -- many out of
their homes, many with different schedules -- the
traditional 9-to-5 day has morphed into a 12-noon-to-
midnight day," (Cebrzynsk,2008). That's also true for
college students, dietitians say. Many attend class during
the day, work an evening job, and pick up fast food when
they clock out. They're looking for something fast and
inexpensive and not thinking whether the food is still
nutritious or not ( Jamieson-Petonic, 2008). Eating at night
may not be something bad that could lead to obesity, but
eating at fastfood chains may lead to many health problems
or issues.
This paper aims to discuss the current issues with regard to
fastfood chains. These include health, sanitary, professional
and some legal issues.
1. Introduction
When James Dean said, "Live fast, die young, leave a
beautiful corpse" in the 1950s, Americans were much
thinner and fast food was a new invention. Today
Americans are simply too chubby to live as fast as the lean
1950s idol. Instead they eat fast food, die younger than they
should and leave increasingly obese corpses.
Along with smoking, substance abuse and inactivity, fast
food presents one of the greatest public-interest health
threats to Americans today. Fast food is almost universally
dangerous and should probably carry a warning from the
surgeon general. It contains meat-based carcinogens, is
high in total calories and saturated fat and is a principal
source of trans fat.
So, what are fast foods anyway? In lay man’s term, it is the
food given that could be prepared in an instant often served
packed for take outs and deliveries. Most fast food stores
often have drive-through services allowing the customers to
order and pick up food without the need to step out of their
cars. These fast food chains could be as big as restaurants
and outlet stores found in malls and could also be as small
as kiosks beside the streets. A perfect example will be
AGNO Street located at the back entrance of De La Salle
University – Manila. Since the capital requirement in
putting up a fast food store today is relatively low, small,
individual fast food chains slowly multiply and are
becoming more common throughout the world. One way to
check how much fast food chains affect our modern way of
living is to ask children of our time on what their favorite
restaurants are. In the Philippines, if the answer is not
Jollibee, it’s McDonalds or KFC or other fast food chains
spread across the country.
Street vendors also contribute a lot to the fast growing
business. With just a cart, a table and a grill, they could
already set up their mini fast food store. Just observe the
famous AGNO Street alone, you got all fast food you’ll ever
wish for. They sell hamburgers, hotdogs, easy packed
meals, toron, sandwiches, siomai, taho, sweet corn, ice
cream, fruits mainly mangoes and buko, isaw, barbeque,
instant noodles, quail eggs, name it and they have it. These
street vendors provide a colorful and varying range of
options designed to quickly captivate passers-by and attract
as much attention as possible.
Other outlets of fast food stores are dominantly found
beside gas stations. Applying it to the Philippine setting
alone, we could notice that all gasoline station ether it’s as
big as the one in South super highway, or just as small as
those found in small narrow street will always have their
convenience stores beside it. There, they sell easy-packed
foods such as hotdogs, doughnuts, and even ready-baked
pastas just so gas customers could not only tune up their
cars but also their tummies.
As the examples above showed, the Philippines is
bombarded with fast food stores everywhere. In a busy
street like Makati, you wouldn’t pass through a street
without seeing a 7-11 or a Mini-Stop store. People will eat
more than five times a week and often, one or more of those
five times is at a fast food restaurant.

2. Health Issues
Probably one of the most eye-catching issues of today. An
example is McDonalds, where a documentary was made on
the health risks that could be acquired by an average
person.
The documentary was entitled “SuperSize Me”, which was
a documentary film of an average American person eating
at McDonald’s for 30 days with Spurlock as the sample.
The result was a 10lbs gain, depression, lethargy and
headaches in just five days. Also, Spurlock had heart
palpitations in the 21st day. After the event of 30 days,
Spurlock was told that his liver had irreversible damages
that could cause a heart attack even if he would lose all the
weight gained during the experiment.
Statistics of heart diseases from obesity
Also many young children are influence by the fast
food chains through their very effective marketing
strategies which is the kid’s value meal through this
children would have eating habits which would last for the
rest of their life. [1]
Rate of Children Obesity from ages 2-15 in England
Up until the late 1980s, fast-food restaurants deep-
fried food in beef tallow loaded with artery-choking
saturated fats. In the early 1990s, McDonalds, responding
in part to public pressure, proudly announced that its fries
would be cooked in "cholesterol-free 100 per cent vegetable
oil." While this was true, it was not the whole truth. The
whole truth is that McDonalds uses partially hydrogenated
vegetable oil. In other words, it uses trans fats, which are at
least as bad for your blood cholesterol as the saturated fats
they replaced, and probably worse.
In some ways this is another kind of high-fat
fraud. You go into a fast food outlet and choose the fries
instead of the burger, thinking you’re avoiding saturated
fat. But it turns out that you’re no better off. Temperatures
used for deep-frying liberate legions of deadly free radicals
from fats. Even more frightening is the effect for multiple
frying episodes. Fats that are used again and again for
frying oxidize at frighteningly high rates.
The portions served by fast food chains and other
restaurants are far larger than the recommended portion
size for most foods. Food costs for restaurants are relatively
low, compared to the costs of rent and labor, so it makes
sense for them to offer larger portions that make their
customers feel like they are getting a bang for the buck.
As American eat out more and more frequently, they
become accustomed to those oversized portion, and think
that such portions are normal. The high caloric content of
these large servings leads to weight gain for regular fast
food customers, and obesity can lead to many dangerous
health problems.
Fast food chains do not alert their customers to the
hazardously high calorie and fat content of the food they
offer. They deserve some of the blame for the epidemic of
obesity, and lawsuits brought by victims of their toxic food
would force these companies to take some responsibility for
their dangerous products. [2]
Chart containing the calorie content and total fat of some
foods that McDonalds provides.
Fast food does not only cause problems to the heart
and liver it can provide a high risk of cancer among its
consumers. It was found in a research that there is a
chemical called acrylamide produce in the frying in high
temperatures of carbohydrate rich foods such as french fries
and potato chips.[3] Grilled food has also been a cause of
cancer because it contains the carcinogenic compounds
formed by the smoke from the grilling of the food.[4]
There were also researches about unhealthy fast
food diets among women may cause cancer to women ages
35 – 54 because according to research of the World Health
Organization . It is said that tumors formed are usually
related to poor nutritional intake. There is an example that
the excess fats of overweight girls may cause cancer
because during puberty the female oestrogen hormones,
which are triggers that help the cause of breast cancer are
usually stored in the excess fat rather than being discarded
by the body. [5]
3. Sanitation Issues
Lets us take this issue to the Philippine setting. Just
recently, about a year or two ago, an incident happened at
Chowking Tutuban – one of the known fast food chains in
the Philippines. A news respondent, Jenny Reyes suffered
from vomiting, fever and stomach ache after she drank
coffee at Chowking Tutuban. According to the Ms. Reyes,
right before she started to drink the coffee, she had already
noticed rat droppings on the drinking cup. She then called
the attention of the branch manager, which told her that
those droppings were just coffee beans. Meanwhile, after
investigation, Philippines’ Bureau of Food and Drugs
reported that after visual and organoleptic tests, there were
really rat droppings found at the cup. Days later, Mayor
Lim, the mayor of Manila claimed to close down Chowking
since it did not have sanitary permits.
In the Philippines, there is a sanitation law on
Food Establishments. The law is called the Sanitation Code
or the P.D 856. Even though there is a law on sanitation,
the government is not so strict when it comes to these
matters. Some food establishments still get sanitary permits
even though they did not pass all the requirements of the
sanitation code. A recent study was made by a group of
students from Philippine Women’s University(2007) on two
fast food chains - Greenwich and Tapa King. Results show
that not all on the sanitation code were followed by these
two establishments.
Please refer to figure 1 for the result of the study
Another example related to this issue is the food
served at Dixies fastfood chain located at Castro St.,
Manila. A member of the group reports that he often sees
cockroaches moving through the tables of the
establishment; and what is more shocking with this is that
customers continue to eat at the establishment despite poor
food sanitation. One more example is Tropical Hut.
Tropical Hut is a known fastfood chain in the Philippines.
Another member of the group reports that there was a time
when he was eating there and he needed an extra plastic
cup. He then asked for the plastic cup from the counter and
received a cup that had cockroaches moving inside of it.
Come to think of it, if one cockroach is present in a plastic
cup, chances are there might also be cockroaches in other
plastic cups.
The foods that are produced uncleanly can be a
result of fast food establishments pushing itself to its limits
in producing food in a very fast manner. In coping up with
customer demands and gaining profits, fastfood
establishments tend to forget ethics. Instead, they just keep
on producing food without even thinking of the customer’s
health. And although some customers recognize poor
sanitations from different fast food establishments,
customers still take the risk and go to fast food chains for
ease and speed of food delivery. Customers put too much
trust on these establishments without even knowing how
clean their food was prepared. What would happen to a
customer if he gets infected by a disease brought up by a
cockroach? What would happen if a customer drinks a cup
of softdrinks with cockroaches floating in it? Because of
poor sanitation and customers putting up too much trust,
customers, just like the case of Jenny Reyes, sometimes end
up complaining on the services or products of the restaurant
or fast food chains they go to.
4. Legal Issues
Many fast food restaurants have faced legal issues one of
the most famous issues is the McLibel issue where
McDonalds charged two British people for libel because
they are saying that their food is unhealthy. In which the
trial went through twenty years before the decision of the
jury. The decision favored the two British people because
they were only practicing their freedom of speech.[1] But
from recent research it has been proven that the two people
who were saying that Mc Donald’s food is unhealthy are
correct.
In California there was a time where the
government would like fast food restaurants to warn their
customers about the effects of fast food and about the
contents of it just like in the tobacco industry where they
have the surgeon general warning. Because in California
they are required to put warnings on any products with
harmful chemicals that may cause diseases and defects. For
example, it was discovered that french fries when fried at a
high temperature may produce acrylamide that is a cause
for cancer. In addition, acrylamide is already part of list of
harmful chemical in California. Companies did not want to
comply with it because they would like French fries or
potato chips to be exempted because the acrylamide will
only be toxic when it is in extreme temperatures. They are
also arguing that there maybe an unnecessary public scare
because the food is not serve at such high temperature will
not be buying from them.[3]
5. Possible Actions
As far as possible actions go, one might be for companies to
change. However, are companies willing to change? One
has to ponder if a company, like McDonald's, which is so
successful even want to change. Why would they want to
change their policies about what they are going to be
marketing and holding their suppliers to more stringent
food production standards? In an interview with Eric
Schlosser by Julia Livshin, Schlosser said "The McDonald's
Corporation, at the moment, in many ways reminds me of
the Soviet-era Kremlin. I was unable to get a single
question answered after weeks of calling them, e-mailing
them, and faxing them. It was what I imagine it must have
been like dealing with the old Communist Party
bureaucrats. Can the McDonald's Corporation remake
itself into a company that behaves ethically, has a stronger
social conscience, and changes its menu?" That remains to
be seen.
Another possible actions might be to have a whole new
industry come about. New companies could emerge,
embodying a different set of values, selling better and
healthier food. Restaurants like Oh My Gulay (Baguio),
The Good Earth, Cerealicious, Kozui Green Tea, and so
forth come to mind. These restaurants focus on a healthier
menu and might emerge as the companies that make the
difference.
To improve worker safety, there could be an immediate and
tough clean-up on the meatpacking companies and strict
enforcement of the worker safety laws that we already have.
The easiest step would be to slow down the production line.
The big beef slaughterhouses process between 300 and 375,
sometimes up to 400 farm animals an hour. The number of
injuries at a plant is often directly related to the speed of the
line, so the first thing would be to force these companies to
slow down their production lines.
As for food safety, the meatpacking companies should be
held strictly accountable for the products that they sell.
Manufacturers of stuffed animals are held accountable. The
government can force them to recall stuffed animals that
are defective and that might choke children. In the same
way, the meatpacking companies should be held
accountable for the sale of contaminated meat. There
should be legislation passed immediately that gives the
government the power to recall tainted meat. It should not
be up to the meatpacking companies to issue voluntarily
recalls. The government should also be given the power to
impose large civil fines on meatpacking companies that
knowingly ship tainted meat. We should also reorganize the
food-safety system in the Philippines so that there is a
single food-safety agency, like there is in many Western
European countries. About a dozen federal agencies have
jurisdiction over food safety right now. The Department of
Agriculture is in charge not only of inspecting our meat,
but also of promoting its sale. There is an inherent conflict
of interest. We need an independent food-safety agency
whose first priority is public health. [6]
6. Conclusion
If a company were to change its policies, perhaps the main
harm would be more cost and less profit for that particular
company and consumers. However, for all other
stakeholders such as animals, the environment, and
consumers, benefits are the overall outcome. Granted,
animals will still end up on the plates of consumers, but
perhaps they will not be wrongfully treated. The
environment would also benefit, as fewer acres of rain
forest will be destroyed, and hence less litter winds up on
the streets. Finally, consumers may have to pay more
money, but benefits would be better health. If a whole new
industry emerged, existing fast food chains would not
directly be harmed, so their rights would not be violated.
The main consequences would be more variety for people to
choose from.
7. References
(n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2009, from ABS CBN:
http://forums.abs-cbn.com/post/2463505.aspx
(n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2009, from Fa-ir: http://www.fa-
ir.org/ai/fastfood_hidden.htm
[1] Papasin, A. (n.d.) Ethics on Fastfood Retrieved March 12,
2009, from Santa Clara University:
http://cseserv.engr.scu.edu/nquinn/ENGR019_299Fall2000/Stude
ntWebSites/Papasin/ResearchPaper.htm
(n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2009, from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Size_Me
[2] Fast Food is a Recipe for Cancer. (1998). Retrieved March Vigilante, K. M., & Flynn, M. P. (n.d.). The Dangers of Fast
12, 2009, from BBC News: Food. Retrieved March 12, 2009, from Alive:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/196741.stm http://www.alive.com/280a1a2.php?subject_bread_cramb=111

Go, C., & Sampang, V. (2007). Sanitation Project. Manila: Yehey. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2009, from http://forums.abs-
Philippine Women's University. cbn.com/post/2463505.aspx

[3]Kostigen, T. (2005). Smoking The Fast-Food Industry Fight [6]Livshin (2000). Unhappy Meals. Retrieved March 12, 2009,
Against Warning Labels Reminiscent Of Tobacco Wars. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/unbound/interviews/ba2000-12-
March 12, 2009, from Rense: 14.ht
http://www.rense.com/general67/ffood.htm
Top Blog Arena. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2009, from
[4]Popken, B. (2006). Fast Food Sued for Cancer Chicken. http://www.topblogarea.com/sitedetails_10419-4.html
Retrieved March 12, 2009, from Consumerist:
http://consumerist.com/consumer/fast-food/fast-foods-sued-for-
cancer-chicken-204387.php

Figure 1. Comparison of Greenwich and Tapa King’s Food Sanitation

Selected Sections from P.D 856 Greenwich Tapa King
Yes No Yes No

Section 17 : Structural Requirements

1. Is the toilet or restroom located opposite the kitchen or the √ √
place?

2. Are the flooring in the Kitchen and dining areas constructed √ √

in such a way that it is easy to clean and durable?

3. Is the illumination of the place sufficient to service its √ √

purpose?

4. Is the ventilation provided adequate or comfortable? √ √

5. Are there canopies, air ducts provided? N/A N/A

6. Is the spacious enough to provide employees easy movement √ √

in the area to carry out his duty?
√ √
7. Are the passage ways or aisles unobstructed or wide enough to
permit movement of employees and customers without
contaminating the food by clothing or personal contacts?
√ √
8. Are there amenities provided in the wash room?

Section 19: Food Handlers

1. Are food workers wearing clean and proper garments? √ √

2. Are food workers not allowed to smoke and eat foods in the √ √
preparation areas?
Section 21: Toilet and Washing Facilities
1. Are these rooms open directly into spaces where food is √ √
prepared, stored, and served?

2. Are the male and female restrooms separated? √ √

3. Are there hand washing facilities provided? √ √

5. Is there adequate water supply? √ √

6. Are these toilet and washing facilities clean and free from √ √
odor?
Section 30: Food Serving Operations
1. Is hand contact in food being avoided? √ √
2. Are they using serving utensils in handling food? √ √