FAST food fares are  part of Filipino  diet - easy, quick and apt for people always on the go. Even   school children’s baon are bought from fast food.

Regular fast food diet poses lots of health risks but there’s a trick to stay healthy while you enjoy the food. One trick, of course, is not to eat regularly in fast food restaurants. An occasional stop is okay. And when ordering the food, here are more tricks to consider:

* Keep it small. If the fast-food restaurant offers several sandwich sizes, pick the smallest. Bypass hamburgers with two or three layers of patties, which can pack more than 1,000 calories and 70 grams of fat. Choose instead a regular or kiddie meal which has about 250 to 300 calories. And say no when they ask to upsize your drinks and fries. This switch alone saves 200 to 300 calories.

* Healthy side dish. Take advantage of the healthy side dishes offered at many fast-food restaurants. For example, instead of french fries choose a side salad with low-fat dressing or a baked potato. Or add a fruit bowl or a fruit and yogurt option to your meal. Other healthy choices include apple or orange slices, corn on the cob, steamed rice, or baked potato chips.

* More on greens. If you go for salad with grilled chicken, shrimp or vegetables, choose fat-free or low-fat dressing on the side, rather than regular salad dressing, which can have 100 to 200 calories a packet.

Skip extras, such as cheese, bacon bits and croutons, which quickly increase your calorie count. If you forgo the dressing, you can find salads for around 300 calories at most fast-food chains.

* Grilled is better. Several fast food restaurant offer grilled meat and burger. Of course, fried and breaded foods, such as crispy chicken sandwiches and breaded fish fillets are yummy but they are high in fat and calories.

* Watch your drinks. Instead of ordering large   soda, take  the diet version or mineral water. Avoid  floats and shakes. They contain more than 800 calories and all of your saturated fat allotment for the day.

Some fast food restos are open for customer’s special request. You can ask for healthier options and substitutions for your sandwiches or meal. You can ask reduced-fat mayonnaise or mustard on your sandwich, or more relish and pickles and greens instead of mayonnaise.