You can't drive down the main street of a decent sized town and not see 4-7 marquee signs luring you in to indulge in a calorie-ridden meal on the go. Fast Food - it's everywhere, it's convenient, it's tasty and it's cheap. No where else in the world could you get a double patty hamburger for $1!There are a lot of instances when fast food is the only way to fit in a meal for your family. There are also a lot of instances when fast food is over-implemented into a family meal plan. This is not a "preaching" post about cutting fast food out of the diet, I like my quarter pounder just like the next guy. This post is about a new tool I found to be very useful when choosing just what it is you want to eat off the fast food menu.
This is a neat internet tool that gives nutritional labels to any fast food menu item you could think of. Just type in what you would like to know. You can search different menu items and sort by nutritional content. It's a super helpful way to make eating out just a little bit better for you and yours.
Back to that Quarter Pounder I was talking about earlier. At McDonald's I always order a #3 with ketchup and pickles. After visiting this site, I realized that I could nix the cheese on that burger which takes the calories down by 110 and the sodium down by 470 mg. I don't need that cheese now that I see the difference it would make.
Let's talk about French Fries. Man alive those are delicious! If you order a meal they come with it, so avoiding them is next to impossible(for me too!). The problem with these little suckers is portion size. If you eat only half of the fries served up with most value meals, it cuts the sodium, calories and fat down to a decent enough level that your meal can really find a place in a person's daily intake - as long as we're not looking at every day!
The other interesting thing I found by searching on this handy site is that salads, while they may make you feel better about fast food, aren't any better at all! Wendy's Chicken BLT salad has almost 500 more mg of sodium than a Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger.
Play around on this site for a bit, see what interesting things you can find about the food that is served up fast to Americans every day. I know that I will be making more informed decisions at the counter. Post a comment about interesting things you find on Fast Food Facts!
\I just stumbled upon your blog - I love it!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Brooke! We are a group of driven students and alumni at Kansas State University working to bridge the gap between producers and consumers of food. Enjoy and tell your friends! We are also on twitter and facebook!
ReplyDeletefast food facts... really? there is no informed fast food consumer. If you eat fast food, then you are obviously an uninformed consumer.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting Steph! I agree with you that fast food is not the most nutritious choice for dinner. However, I can understand a busy schedule and the need for a quick bite to eat. I thought this website was helpful for those of us who do have to hit the drive through on occasion to determine what might be better options on the menu. I don't think it is a case of being uninformed. Sometimes it's a persons only option no matter how informed he or she might be.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments and keep reading the blog!