Have you ever wondered how many calories are in some of your favorite restaurant meals? Well, soon your curiosity will be satisfied, because calorie counts on menus could be coming to a restaurant near you!
On November 25, the Food and Drug Administration passed new regulations mandating that calorie counts be posted on menus or menu boards at chain restaurants and a variety of other food establishments with 20 or more locations, including movie theaters, amusement parks and in the prepared section of grocery stores. This long-awaited ruling is a continuation of the 2010 Affordable Care Act’s menu labeling law.
As a New York City resident, I admit that the salads I previously perceived as calorie-friendly took on a less welcoming look after the city mandated that chain restaurants post calorie counts on their menus in 2006. (I’m still not convinced that Chinese chicken salad is 1610 calories, but that’s a story for another time!) Now, just fewer than 20 states have similar rulings, and with the release of these new regulations, we’ll shortly be seeing a national expansion. The hope is that this information will significantly impact consumers’ food selections in the way they eat outside the home. In turn, better choices could lead to better health for adults and children suffering from obesity and its related diseases.
Will seeing these numbers actually change what we order? Study results so far are mixed, but there may not have been enough information to make accurate conclusions. One study showed that nutrition facts information had helped consumers make more educated food selections, which led to less calories ordered. In other cases, choices were not influenced by the calories displayed on menus. Nevertheless, it’s still unclear what information is most valuable to consumers. What is clear is that people purchasing the food have to care about what and how much they are eating.
Since Americans consume at least one-third of their daily calories away from home, amounting to half of their total food budget, this federal ruling can have major implications on public health. Increased transparency means consumers no longer need to overestimate or underestimate the caloric cost of their meal; those numbers will be listed along with prices, clearly displaying the potential impact on waist and wallet.
While not all calories are created equal, and a 500 calorie donut will never be a better choice than a 600 calorie salad, a basic understanding of calorie counts can help consumers make more informed choices when dining out.
Here’s what you need to know about these new regulations:
— They apply to food establishments with 20 locations or more, including sit-down restaurants; drive-through windows; take-out food establishments, like pizza restaurants; grocery stores and convenience stores with prepared foods; salad bars or hot food bars that are self-serve; bakeries and coffee shops; entertainment establishments such as movie theaters, bowling alleys and amusement parks; ice cream shops and warehouse stores.
— Certain alcoholic beverages served at restaurants must have their calorie counts included on menus, but mixed drinks served at a bar are not included.
— Written nutrition information for standard menu items available upon request may include total calories, calories from fat, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, trans fat, sodium, total carbohydrates, sugars, dietary fiber and protein.
The new regulations must be implemented by December 1, 2015, giving food establishments a full year to make necessary changes. Will these new rulings encourage restaurants to create healthier menu options or downsize instead of supersize their portions so they appear less caloric? Will we eat in restaurants less often? Or, will we take advantage of selections that can help us trim down while eating out?
The missing link here is that studies have also shown that, although calories are the hottest item on food labels, most consumers don’t know what calories are, let alone, how much they need. Unless education is served as a side dish, we may continue to bite off more than we should chew.
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Calorie Counts Coming to a Menu Near You originally appeared on usnews.com
