Calorie posting works for kids, not for you
Calorie posting on fast food menus has long been tough to quantify.
Last November, when New York became the first U.S. state to institute the plan, it was apparent the initiative wasn’t doing much. The right philosophy was in place, but the calorie posting had a “modest” impact on the way people ordered their food, the New York Times reported.
Still, the program charged on and, still, we continued to study its effects. Now, we may finally have a grip on the future of this movement.
A new report suggests calorie posting on fast food menus does influence the way we order, just not the way we order for ourselves.
According to Reuters, parents won’t lower their caloric intake when energy levels appear on menu boards, but they will order healthier choices for their kids when such info is posted.
“On average, parents whose menus did not list calories chose a meal of about 670 calories (for their children), while those who did have that information chose a meal of 570 calories,” the news agency reports.
A difference of a hundred calories? Not that big of a deal, on the surface. Yet a hundred calories per day can lead to about ten extra pounds each year, Dr. Pooja Tandon, a U of Washington paediatrician tells Reuters.
By Jason Buckland, MSN Money
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