# How concerned should I be about eating fast food in the covid-19 pandemic? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 14, 2020, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494 "2020-03-14T19:47:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/1 "2020-03-14T19:47:19Z")
In general, can I potentiallyy get the coronavirus from eating fast food. Also because this is the SDMB I don’t want the first 20 replies telling me about how you don’t eat fast food and nobody else should either. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/2 "2020-03-14T19:54:28Z")
Yes very dangerous, especially Domino’s pizza. Verstuurd vanaf mijn moto g(6) met Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/3 "2020-03-14T19:56:43Z")
Until congress passes that emergency Sick leave bill, I’d be quite concerned. If fast food workers have a choice of working while sick or not paying the rent and becoming homeless, they are gonna work sick.☹ Most are pretty stringent about washing hands, sure, but it’s so easy to scratch your nose and keep on prepping that burger. Myself, I am staying away. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/4 "2020-03-14T20:01:20Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > Yes very dangerous, especially Domino’s pizza. Why do you say this? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/5 "2020-03-14T20:10:01Z")
The coronavirus is a respiratory infection, not a food-borne illness, so technically you can’t catch it from what you eat. But a fast food restaurant, like any other public place, could bring you into contact with an infected person. Here’s one current article I found: [How McDonald’s, Chipotle, and Other Fast Food Chains Are Responding to the COVID-19 Outbreak](https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/a31486431/fast-food-chains-restaurants-open-coronavirus/) ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/6 "2020-03-14T21:11:21Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > Yes very dangerous, especially Domino’s pizza. > > Verstuurd vanaf mijn moto g(6) met Tapatalk MODS ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/7 "2020-03-14T21:37:08Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > MODS Crush him! Crush him! ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/8 "2020-03-14T21:37:09Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > Yes very dangerous, especially Domino’s pizza. Well, it depends. If you order a large you have a 15% risk of infection. But if you order two mediums your risk drops to 0.02% ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/9 "2020-03-14T21:37:21Z")
**Moderator Note** > [@polar\_bear](#): > > Yes very dangerous, especially Domino’s pizza. This thread was originally posted in GQ. Please refrain from joke answers in GQ until the topic has been factually addressed. Note also that the OP was specifically trying to avoid answers like this, which makes it a bit of a threashit. This is a warnable offense. **Moderator Action** “How concerned should I be” is more a matter of opinion than fact, so I am going to move this to IMHO. Factual information to support opinions about how concerned one should be is of course welcome in IMHO. ETA: One more moderator note - let’s all focus on the actual topic now, please. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/10 "2020-03-14T22:03:52Z")
nm wrong forum ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/11 "2020-03-14T22:59:27Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Why do you say this? [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=891528](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=891528) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/12 "2020-03-15T02:57:55Z")
The safety of food is a very valid concern. A lot of people are avoiding restaurants and using food delivery services like Bite Squad and GrubHub. My family isn’t ordering any pizza. The large box seems like the perfect surface for germs from hands or coughs. We ordered from DQ using Bite Squad. Hoping that the outer bag protected the food. (the DQ bag is separate from the paper delivery bag) We are searching for legitimate answers. How safe is food delivery? So far there’s not much information. We may have to eat whatever can be cooked at home. The grocery stores are already getting low on soups and other easily heated food. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/13 "2020-03-15T03:10:44Z")
How does GrubHub protect you if somebody sick sneezes on you food while it is being made? ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_Peebles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Jim\_Peebles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_Peebles)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/14 "2020-03-15T03:18:44Z")
My guess is you drastically increase your chances of being infected with Covid-19 by eating fast food. I also guess Covid-19 is just a run of the mill virus, but that is something I have argued in other threads. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/15 "2020-03-15T03:33:20Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > How does GrubHub protect you if somebody sick sneezes on you food while it is being made? It doesn’t. ☹ That’s why the State Health Departments needs to significantly increase restaurant inspections. Make sure the food safety regulations are followed. But, the sheer numbers of Covid-19 is unique. The odds that someone sick is preparing food go up dramatically. We’re only a week or two behind Italy in reaching the crises they’re facing. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/16 "2020-03-15T04:24:57Z")
> [@Jim\_Peebles](#): > > I also guess Covid-19 is just a run of the mill virus, but that is something I have argued in other threads. What is the threshold number of deaths there will have to be before you finally admit to being utterly wrong? (I’m gessing infinity.) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/17 "2020-03-15T05:54:44Z")
Fast food? Heck, I will be avoiding \*\*all \*\*restaurants - including prepared food from the supermarket - until this is done. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_Peebles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Jim\_Peebles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_Peebles)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/18 "2020-03-15T06:21:26Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > What is the threshold number of deaths there will have to be before you finally admit to being utterly wrong? (I’m gessing infinity.) More than the flu. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/19 "2020-03-15T07:01:39Z")
A friend of mine works at a local sandwich place, you can kinda consider it like a local version of Subway although it’s got a bigger menu. Employees are very well aware that everyone is carrying around a camera and that one pic can go viral instantly and ruin a restaurant. So, everyone follows all the hygiene rules. I would feel comfortable eating fast food or any restaurant food of a place I regularly frequent. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494/20 "2020-03-15T07:12:33Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > Fast food? Heck, I will be avoiding \*\*all \*\*restaurants - including prepared food from the supermarket - until this is done. This is one of my concerns. If we do go to work, it’s either the company restaurant or the nearby restaurants, assuming they are stil open. If we were to bring a lunch it would be something cold to eat at our desks (ick) or could use the one microwave in the building, or the microwave in the company restaurant. All arguments for working from home, or at least, working only a part day at the office, then coming home for lunch, and staying there. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-concerned-should-i-be-about-eating-fast-food-in-the-covid-19-pandemic/849494.md?page=2)