9 Fast-Food Facts...or Fiction?

Hot Sauce and Fried Chicken

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.

Fact or fiction: Kentucky Fried Chicken was renamed KFC because its products don't contain chicken but rather meat from genetically engineered mutant animals. Fiction: Not true. KFC was borne of a marketing ploy to remove the word "fried" (and its unhealthy connotations) from the chain's name.

Fact or fiction: There's no dairy in the McDonald's McFlurry. Fiction: With this myth, McDonald's is not getting a fair shake. Its shakes are made by combining prefabricated "shake mix" with flavoring syrup and milk, which is then dispensed from a refrigerated unit. It's faster (hey, it is fast food) and this delivery method guarantees a more consistent product.