fast food calories

To Eat Fewer Calories, Read Before You Eat

Study: People consume fewer fast-food calories if they check the calorie count before ordering.

By Megan Othersen Gorman

Topics: food labeling, calories

Check the calorie count before you purchase. It really will sway your menu choices and curb a tendency to overdose on fast-food calories.

Read up before you eat up: Checking the calorie count seems to encourage a lighter lunch.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—At the annual meeting of the Obesity Society in Washington, DC, researchers from New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene revealed new evidence that their city's pioneering labeling law, which requires that fast-food restaurants post the calorie counts of menu items, actually works to decrease the amount of fast-food calories people consume.

THE DETAILS: Researchers from New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene surveyed nearly 11,000 customers in 13 fast-food chains—McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Subway, Au Bon Pain, KFC, Popeye's, Domino's, Pizza Hut, Papa John's, Taco Bell, Starbucks, and Dunkin Donuts—across 275 New York City locations in the spring of 2007, and another 12,000 customers earlier this year. They gave each customer a $2 Metrocard in exchange for his or her register receipt and completion of a brief survey.

What they found was that customers who read the calorie information on menu items posted in the chain purchased an average of 106 fewer calories than those who said they didn't notice the postings—754 calories' worth of food as opposed to 860 calories' worth. The difference was most pronounced at Burger King, and burger joints in general, where customers who read the posted info purchased 152 fewer calories, on average, than those who didn't. Fifteen percent of the customers surveyed said they saw the info on calorie counts and used it when making their orders.

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Fast Foods & Calorie Counting

Posted on November 4th, 2009 by mlc

Where have you been? New study finds it does NOT MATTER if people read or not; there has been no difference in caloric intake in fast food places, even though they have posted calorie counts! People just don't want to cook!
I have been to fast food places and watched obese children & parents picking up dinners for 5-6 family members; I go to the store and find chicken, beef, pork deals that could feed that same family for the same price (or less), for two days! Most people that are obese are also LAZY! They just don't want to go home and make the effort to cook a good, healthy meal! VERY SAD!; especially for the children. These poor eating habits will follow them for the rest of their lives!

Fast Foods & Calorie Counting

Posted on November 5th, 2009 by Bonnie Crawford

Good article, and so true. Fortunately, I grew up in a much slower paced world when most moms stayed home and cooked for their families every night. My grandmother lived with us, and she was an excellent cook, so I grew up eating good vegetables and never had a weight problem. (I was even eating boiled okra at 4 and loving it!) By the way, I'm 60, take no medications, have no health problems, and am thin. I believe that whoever said "food is medicine" was absolutely correct.

My husband and I never even THINK about going into a fast food restaurant. Most of our meals are cooked at home and are like the food our mothers and grandmothers cooked. If children today were taught early to enjoy healthful foods, AND got plenty of exercise like we did growing up, the obesity problem would not exist. And thankfully, my generation did not have all the Ipods, video games, and other nonsense that distract kids today.

Sorry if this sounds "preachy," but it's just the way things have changed.

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