Question of the week: Should fast food chains be forced to stop using trans fat?

Ho Yin-shan, 15

King George V School

No. This is not viable in the long term, because trans fats are just one of the many unhealthy aspects of fast food. For example, fast food contains a high level of fat (not just trans fat), salt and preservatives. Just as taking the homeless off the streets won't solve poverty, or shutting down factories won't reduce global warming, simply banning trans fat is not the final solution. Too much public money is wasted cracking down on unnecessary things. The problem is fast food, not trans fat. Scientists have linked fast food to increased risks of heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Fast food companies churn out false advertising, pay minimum wages, and cause environmental damage with excessive packaging. Trans fat has been linked to heart disease, and may also cause diabetes, obesity, cancer and liver dysfunction. But they are just one aspect of the many dangers posed by the monster that is fast food. And if fast food restaurants really care about consumers' health, they will stop using trans fat voluntarily.

Benjamin So Ka-ho, 17

Wah Yan College, Kowloon

Of course. Trans fat is used in a variety of fast food products, including French fries and hamburgers, to increase their shelf life and to cut costs. So what's the big deal? The problem is that trans fats are far more unhealthy than natural saturated fat. These man-made fats greatly affect the cholesterol levels in your body, which in turn clogs up your blood vessels and raises the risk of coronary diseases. Research has shown that ingesting trans fat can double your calorie intake and increase a woman's coronary risk to as high as 93 per cent. They also reduce your blood vessel function by 30 per cent and cause a rise in bad cholesterol levels in your bloodstream. The prolonged intake of such fats leads to poor health, which many city dwellers are already suffering from. Fast food chains supply billions of tonnes of food to people around the globe every day and more than 70 per cent of the meals contain trans fat. Bit by bit, trans fat accumulates in your body until you're under siege by a stream of diseases. What fast food shops are doing is no different from torturing you to death. Would you let them get away with it?

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