What's your fast-food IQ? Uncover the truth to these common fast food myths.


Fast food is a mainstay of the American diet. In fact, in any given day, 1 in 4 of us fills our stomachs at a fast-food chain. What does this mean to our health? America is the fattest nation in the world, with 61 percent of adults and children weighing in at overweight or obese, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

Like our bellies, the fast-food phenomenon is growing too: we plunked down $3 billion on the speedy burgers, fries, and tacos in 1992, and today that number tops a whopping $110 billion. In 2004, Morgan Spurlock chronicled his experience of eating solely fast food for one month in his Academy Award-nominated documentary Super Size Me. The filmmaker gained 25 pounds and put his health in jeopardy, according to a panel of doctors. (Next up for this one-month fast-food junkie: His one-hour TV reality show 30 Days, which premiered June 15th on the cable channel FX. In the series, an individual takes up a completely different lifestyle -- whether religious, economic, or ethnic -- for 30 days.)

In the meantime, here are some bite-size nuggets of info about fast food that can help you navigate the counters:

Fact or fiction: Taco Bell hot sauce can clean dirty pennies.
Fact: Apparently this condiment can reinstate shine to your small change. But before you opt for south of the border fare without flair, consider this: Two of the product's ingredients, vinegar and salt, in combination seem to cause a reaction that cleans the pennies. The product itself is safe to ingest.

Fact or fiction: French fries are the most commonly consumed vegetable in America.
Fact: But you'll be much healthier if you start piling your plate with dark, leafy greens or sweet potatoes instead。

mainstay
[n] 支柱, 中流砥柱
given
[adj] 赠予的, 沉溺的, 特定的, 假设的
chain
[n] 链(条),镣铐, 一连串, 一系列
overweight
[n] 超重
obese
[adj] 肥胖的, 肥大的
statistics
[n] 统计学, 统计表
belly
[n] 腹部, 胃
phenomenon
[n] 现象
plunk
[v] 砰砰地弹, 砰地投掷
burger
[n] 碎肉夹饼, 各种夹饼
fry
[n] 油炸食物, 油炸锅, 鱼苗, 鱼秧
taco
[n] （墨西哥）玉米面豆卷
whopping
[adj] 巨大的, 庞大的
chronicle
[v] 编入编年史
sole
[adj] 单独的, 唯一的
Academy Award
<美>奥斯卡奖(美国电影艺术金像奖)
nominate
[v] 提名, 推荐, 任命, 命名
documentary
[n] 记录片
jeopardy
[n] 危险, 危险
panel
[n] 面板, 嵌板, 仪表板, 座谈小组, 全体陪审员
junkie
[n] 有毒瘾者, 废旧品商人
premiere
[n] 初次公演, 初演主角
religious
[adj] 信奉宗教的, 虔诚的, 宗教上的, 修道的,
ethnic
[adj] 人种的, 种族的, 异教徒的
meantime
[n] 其间, 其时
bite-size nugget
小软糖（一口大小）
navigate
[v] 航行, 航海, 航空
penny
[n] 便士, <美> 分
condiment
[n] 调味品
reinstate
[v] 恢复
opt
[v] 选择
flair
[n] 才能, 本领
vinegar
[n] 醋
ingest
[v] 摄取, 咽下, 吸收
French fries
[n] 薯条
consume
[v] 消耗, 消费, 消灭, 大吃大喝, 吸引
leafy
[adj] 叶状的, 多叶的, 阔叶的, 树叶茂盛的