After eating from Taco Bell (or any other fast food place) instead of running for the border, I want to run for the bathroom. :eek: What is there in fast food that causes a watery cleanout of the system and how does it work so quickly?
My guess is the spices. I do not think “fast” food is any different from any other food. Greasy food is greasy food whether fast or slow, spicy food is spicy food, etc. My guess is the spices
I’m not so sure. I really notice the “running” problem when I eat at KFC or McDonald’s… Hmm, maybe there is something to that secret blend of spices of the Original Recipe from KFC. 
Does the grease from greasy food really go through the system that quickly? I would say the time from eating to lavatory visits is around 2-4 hours.
My guess is the high calories and fat content are responsible for this.
See earlier thread…
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=10605
It seems to me that fat would slow digestion and actually have the opposite effect. How many drinks are you having with it? You may be drinking more since it’s so hot.
While we’re on that subject, after I eat spicy foods, it burns my you-know-what afterwards. Hot in and hot out. Does everyone experience the same?
That earlier thread was great, but it lacked a little bit for answers…
The best reasons I’ve seen so far is “high fat content” and “cleanliness”
Any ideas of how long each would take to affect the digestive system. My understanding was that any bacteria from lack of proper cleaning would take at least 6+ hours before it hit the system. And, I thought high fat content would take even longer.
Anybody with real medical knowledge out there who can give us time estimates on what could be at work here?
I should note that some times I have no troubles with fast food (I used to work at Burger King as a teen) and some places are real bad. This seems to lend some credence to the “cleanliness” problem. If it is cleanliness, any idea of what bacteria this could be?
Brian
No more or less than usual.
Ouch, yeah I experience that. I think your system gets used to it if you keep eating hot food. Either that or you just become numb to any feeling whatsoever.
Brian
I’ve never had this problem myself, but I know it’s common.
I have the same questions as everyone else–why? I was taught in science class that from beginning to end digestion takes about 24 hours. How on earth could food go through however many feet of intestines there are in that amount of time?
My kids have that problem at Jack in the Box. By the time they finish eating their stomachs hurt, and the runs follow in short order. I don’t know if it is the beef or the fries, as the chicken doesn’t seem to do it…
For that matter, does anyone have any info on foods that make you poop nearly instantly? Garden burgers do that for me. I cant understand it because (liek the others on this thread) I always thought it took time for stuff to digest before it hikes the entrail trail.
GardenBurgers make you defecate, but it’s not the gardenburger you just ate that’s coming out. Fiber in those types of meal expedites the process.
Fat takes the longest time to digest, as it has to be broken down by enzymes secreted by the pancreas. It doesn’t necessarily take 24 hours to digest a meal, and if you eat a lot of fiber, it takes a lot less.