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What’s on the Menu? Lots of Calories!

Would knowing the calories on a restaurant item influence your choice of food? Would seeing that the burgers on the menu below could “cost” you over 1200 calories make a difference to you? Would you select a different food item or would you ignore the information?

burger menu

There are some areas of the country where calorie information is already included on menus. If you haven’t yet seen it, you will. In 2012, all chain restaurants with 20 or more locations (as well as vending machines and some stores that sell food), will be required to clearly post calorie counts on menus.

We might like to think that knowing calorie information would help us in making food choices, but is that always the case? A number of studies have examined habits at fast food chains where menu labeling laws are already in place. The results so far are mixed. Calorie knowledge alone hasn’t always been enough to change consumers' choices.

But, I think there’s more to it than that. Studies show that many people don’t know the connection between calories and weight. That means people will need more education on how to effectively use the calorie information that is provided in restaurants. For example, if you are a 140 lb. female and want to maintain that weight, eating one of the burgers in the graphic above, would be between 84-100% of your maintenance calories for the entire day (depending on the burger you chose). And that’s not counting the fries and soda (or breakfast and lunch, for that matter)! Perhaps if people start changing their choices over time, restaurants may offer healthier options in response.

Customers have the right to know what they are eating. For those of us who do understand the calorie consequences of foods, having that information helps us make informed decisions. I know it has changed some of my choices.

So, ultimately, how effective do you think the government's new labeling rules will be in improving food choices? Would having calorie information on menus change YOUR food choices?
 

by LindaGotthelf on 08/01/2011 | Share Story With a Friend

tags: Weight-Loss, planning, strategies

About the Author

Linda Gotthelf

Linda is the Director of Research and has a Ph.D in Psychology specializing in behavioral medicine. She is a founding member of HMR, starting as a health educator and working in several roles since 1984 and has been a co-author on many professional articles.

Comments (6) Post a comment
I went on vacation last week and almost all of the restaurants had the calories posted. Seeing exactly how much I would be eating really helped my choices! At a burger joint I would have usually gotten a milkshake, burger and fries but seeing that the milkshake alone had 1000 calories made it completely unappetizing.
by Emiline on 08/20/2012
We just were on a motorcycle ride this past Saturday and we didn't have time for a sit-down restaurant for lunch, so we stopped at Burger King. I resisted the urge for a burger or fries and ordered the salad with grilled chicken and light Italian dressing on the side. I knew I needed to get some fruit in and noticed they had apple "fries" (slices) on the kids menu and so got 2 orders of those along with unsweetened iced tea. Saved a lot of calories and was filling and nutritious!!
by julienix on 08/29/2011
Yes it would make a difference if I was trying to chose between 2 choices. Can see how low cal side veggie side dishes are to add volume!
by LiteheartLisa on 08/23/2011
Thanks for the comments. In response to jacksprat - I think it's great that you are finding strategies that work for you. However, many people find it difficult to cut their food in half as a way to control portions. Hopefully, seeing the calorie content on menus will help people make informed choices and find strategies that work best for them.
by LindaGotthelf on 08/22/2011
One can indulge in a 12 oz burger with either fries or pasta salad (at least 1 cup or maybe 1 1/4 cup pasta salad) at a new restaurant locally. My husband and I share this meal not just in half but by thirds. Each of us takes a third and the "third third" is in the fridge. Planning ahead to share a meal works for us. by Jacksprat
by jacksprat on 08/19/2011
Having the food calories listed on the menus will ceratinly help me and many others. I hope that easy access to this information will cause the most frequently order items to be healthy ones.
by BrendaB on 08/03/2011