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Big Mac With a Side of Poop

  • July 21, 2017

Add feces in the ice machines to the list of reasons to avoid fast food restaurants. This alarming discovery was made by the same BBC team that found contamination in the ice machines at Starbucks. 

There is a reason why watchdogs check the ice machines for contamination and dangerous bacteria. Previous investigative reports have revealed that a poorly maintained restaurant ice machine is little more than a cesspool of filth and bacteria. Lab tests in 2013 found that ice from fast food restaurants is dirtier than toilet water. In that study, U.K. branches of McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, Starbucks and other fast food restaurants contained more bacteria than the water found in the restaurants’ commodes.

While these studies have been carried out in restaurants in the U.K., the results can be expected to be about the same in the U.S. The issue relates not only to the water itself, but also to the bacterial growth that can occur in the ice machine. Combine this with a lack of hygiene on the part of the workers and you have a recipe for disaster.

The fact that people are not keeling over from fecal oral transmittable pathogens is proof that your body is equipped to handle these types of infectious assaults, but that certainly does not mean there’s no health risk. Children, the elderly and anyone with a poorly functioning immune system are among the most vulnerable to contaminated water.

Frequenting fast food restaurants and drinking sweetened beverages are factors that will take a toll on your immune function. This could render you more susceptible to experiencing health problems from contaminated ice. Even water has its own set of concerns. Before the environmentally destructive (and costly) bottled water craze struck, if you wanted a drink of water when you were out and about in a public locale, you took a sip from a nearby drinking fountain.

There is a simple solution to the beverage quandary. Bring a reusable water bottle that you fill at home. Filtering your water is no longer optional. Water pollution is a significant problem. Drinking water may be contaminated with gender-bending pharmaceutical drugs, agricultural runoff, industrial waste and heavy metals released by deteriorating infrastructure. There is also the issue of the toxic chemicals used during water treatment.