FAST FOOD HEALTHY OPTIONS ARE NOT SO HEALTHY...

You'd like a salad? Want some fries with that?
A recent study shows that providing more menu options on a fast-food menu doesn't mean the average diner provides fewer calories.

Researchers found that although there has been a 53 percent increase in the total number of menu offerings over the last 14 years, the average calorie content of foods sold by eight of the major U.S. fast-food chains has not changed much.

Part of the problem is that some of the highest-calorie foods are masquerading as healthy, said Katherine Bauer, lead author of the study and an assistant professor in the department of public health at Temple University, in Philadelphia.
The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, analyzed menu offerings and their nutritional value from McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Taco Bell, KFC, Arby's, Jack in the Box and Dairy Queen.

"Entree salads, which are increasing in number, can be bad, too. With fried chicken on top and regular dressing, they can have more calories than a burger" says Katherine Bauer.

“You might order a lower-calorie entree, but then you get a drink, fries and a dessert,” she continues. “Calories can add up very quickly. A salad can be low calorie, but not when it includes fried chicken and ranch dressing. Sweetened teas are just empty calories.”

However, most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing, and the nutritional value of a salad vs. a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. So, don’t go swearing off salads just yet.
Read more at http://foodbeast.com/2013/09/03/heres-the-proof-that-fast-food-salads-are-anything-but-healthy/#i7sD2Coo1BvMYJV6.99

However, most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing, and the nutritional value of a salad vs. a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. So, don’t go swearing off salads just yet.
Read more at http://foodbeast.com/2013/09/03/heres-the-proof-that-fast-food-salads-are-anything-but-healthy/#i7sD2Coo1BvMYJV6.99

However, most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing, and the nutritional value of a salad vs. a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. So, don’t go swearing off salads just yet.
Read more at http://foodbeast.com/2013/09/03/heres-the-proof-that-fast-food-salads-are-anything-but-healthy/#i7sD2Coo1BvMYJV6.99

The problem, claims the study, is that some of the highest calorie foods are the ones we’d most expect to be healthy.
However, most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing, and the nutritional value of a salad vs. a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. So, don’t go swearing off salads just yet.

Read more at http://foodbeast.com/2013/09/03/heres-the-proof-that-fast-food-salads-are-anything-but-healthy/#i7sD2Coo1BvMYJV6.99

So, pay attention: most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing and the nutritional value of a salad vs a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. Don't go swearing off salads, just yet!!!

Chicken Apple & Cranberry Salad or ... Club Original Chicken Sandwich

The Garden Fresh Salad Chicken Apple & Cranberry,

when with crispy chicken and dressing shoots up to 700 calories

and 41 grams of fat. That's nearly identical to the

Club Original Chicken Sandwich at 700 calories and 44 grams of fat

Source: huffingtonpost

A nutrition expert who was not involved with the study agreed with the study findings.
"Fast food may be offering more so-called 'healthy' alternatives but not necessarily fewer calories," said Lona Sandon, an assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.
While the researchers didn't see a significant change in the median calorie content of entrees and drinks, they found a small increase in the calories found in condiments and desserts.

Eating fast food becomes a concern when someone eats too much of it too often. Studies have consistently found associations between fast food intake and excess weight and weight gain among adults. A recent survey of adults found that 80 percent purchased fast food in the past month and 28 percent consumed it two or more times a week. On a typical day, nearly 40 percent of teens consume fast food.

Chicken BLT Salad or ... Double Bacon Cheeseburger

Garden Fresh Salad Chicken BLT with grilled chicken and dressing has

510 calories and 33 grams of fat 

About the same as a Double Bacon Cheeseburger,

which clocks in at 520 and 31 grams of fat. Source: huffingtonpost

Rather than blaming Americans for a lack of willpower, Bauer said that they're overexposed to places where most of the available options are unhealthy, high-calorie foods. "We've created environments where it's really impossible to succeed".

"We're not saying you shouldn't ever eat fast food - she continues - but you need to think about things like portion size, preparation method, condiments and the total caloric content of your meal". Sandon says she thinks part of the problem is that people don't understand caloris or have a good idea of how many calories they should be taking every day. "People also tend to overstimate how many calories they burn when they exercise, she added. She also thinks the broader range of menu options may be part of the problem: "When people have more choices they may order more".

calorie foods are the ones we’d most expect to be healthy.
However, most of the calories in fast food salads come from the dressing, and the nutritional value of a salad vs. a burger is very different, despite their similar calorie counts. So, don’t go swearing off salads just yet.

Read more at http://foodbeast.com/2013/09/03/heres-the-proof-that-fast-food-salads-are-anything-but-healthy/#i7sD2Coo1BvMYJV6.9Sandon said she thinks part of the problem is that people don't understand calories or have a good idea of how many calories they should be taking in every day. "People also tend to overestimate how many calories they burn when they exercise," she added.Sandon also thinks just the broader range of menu options may be part of the problem. "When people have more choices they may order more," she said.

Without massive changes by the fast food industry in the caloric content of food, the key is for consumers to try to educate themselves about calories, choose the smallest size available when they find themselves in a fast food and be aware that just because a restaurant promotes healthful options, does not mean that overall the foods sold are lower calorie.

But paying attention to the calories of the items sold in the restaurant isn't still enough: there's something more we need to know before we decide what to order.

Nutritionist Stefanie Sacks interviewd by Caitlyn Becker for HuffPost Live's says that conveying only the calories of a dish doesn't always offer a complete picture of a meal's nutritional stats.
"Calories and nutrition facts do not tell the story of your food," Sacks said. "The ingredient labels do to some extent, but unfortunately we can't fully trust them, either. The health of what you're eating is really about where does your food come from and how is your food processed. There's more that you need to ask about what you're eating."

Paradoxically Sacks explained that if she had to choose between a grass-fed burger with lettuce and tomato and a tortilla salad that came with no information about the origin of the vegetables or ingredients in the dressing, she'd choose the burger because she knows more about the food's background. She concludes that "it's all about EDUCATION and asking questions": we have the right to know what we eat, because it's about our HEALTH!!!


Sources: Katherine W. Bauer, Mary O. Hearst, Alicia A. Earnest, Simone A. French, J. Michael Oakes, Lisa J. Harnack Energy Content of U.S. Fast-Food Restaurant Offerings. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2012; 43 (5): 490 DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2012.06.03

Data for the study were taken from the University of Minnesota Nutrition Coordinating Center Food and Nutrient Database, which includes menu items available at 22 U.S. fast-food restaurant chains.

Lona Sandon was interviewed by Barbara Bronson Gray for US News 

Stefanie Sacks was interviewed for Huffington Post - watch the video here live Huffingtonpost