That Caesar salad you’re about to eat? It’s 800 calories, and that’s without the croutons. The fettuccine alfredo? A whopping 1,220 calories. You may choose to ignore the numbers, but soon it’s going to be tough to deny you saw them.
A requirement tucked into the nation’s massive health care bill will make calorie
counts impossible for thousands of restaurants to hide and difficult for consumers to ignore. More than 200,000 fast food and other chain restaurants will have to include calorie counts on menus, menu boards and even drive-throughs.
The new law, which applies to any restaurant with 20 or more locations, directs the Food and Drug Administration to create a new national standard for menu labeling, superseding a growing number of state and city laws. President Barack Obama was expected to sign the health care legislation Tuesday.
The idea is to make sure that customers process the calorie information as they are ordering. Many restaurants currently post nutritional information in a hallway, on a hamburger wrapper or on their Web site. The new law will make calories immediately available for most items.
"The nutrition information is right on the menu or menu board next to the name of the menu item, rather than in a pamphlet or in tiny print on a poster, so that consumers can see it when they are making ordering decisions," says Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin, chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, who wrote the provision.
It was added to the health bill with the support of the restaurant industry, which is facing different laws from cities and states. Sue Hensley of the National Restaurant Association says it will help restaurants better respond to their customers.
"That growing patchwork of regulations and legislation in different parts of the country has been a real challenge, and this will allow operators to better be able to provide their information," she said.
Some meals will be exempt from the calorie counts, including specials on the menu less than 60 days. The law will also apply to foods sold in vending machines, specifically those that do not have visible calorie listings on the front of the package.
New York City was the first in the country to put a calorie posting law in place. Since then, California, Seattle and other places have done so.
The FDA will have a year to write the new rules, which health advocates have been pushing for years. Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said it’s one step in the fight against obesity.
"Coffee drinks can range from 20 calories to 800 calories, and burgers can range from 250 calories to well over 1,000 calories," she said.
Still, it’s unclear what effect the labeling will have. In a study published last year by the online journal Health Affairs, only half of customers in poor New York City neighborhoods with high rates of obesity and diabetes noticed the calorie counts.
The accuracy of the counts could also be called into question, according to a different study.
In January, the Journal of the American Dietetic Association published a survey of 10 chain restaurants, including Wendy’s and Ruby Tuesday, that said the number of calories in 29 meals or other menu items was an average of 18 percent higher than listed. The discrepancies were said to be due to variations in ingredients and portion sizes.
You know, Elaine, I have been very negative about the whole health care bill. And I’m a positive person by nature. So I’m grateful you posted this. Now that the bill is a reality, I need to start looking for the positive impact it might have. This is a great start. I TOTALLY agree that this information will be useful for many people to make good choices.
Thanks, again. Really. I needed the attitude adjustment.
.-= Ferd´s last blog ..spring has sprung! =-.
Ferd I’m not entirely happy with it either. Far from it. In fact when the Senate version was passed I was aghast and that is putting it mildly. But I am a pragmatist and realize this bill will be improved and we must start somewhere. It does provide a lot of immediate benefits which are greatly needed. So I take a deep breath knowing that womens rights/civil rights weren’t won in a day or in a single fight. It took time and much effort by many people fighting for change. So is the case with our HCR.
Let me just say that many of the meals offered in fast foods and restaraunts can be made with a lot less calories then they are made with, I love fettuccini and make it with one percent milk instead of whipping cream, and it tastes just a great with a lot less carlories, I also add asparagus to it along with shrimp, I have no idea how many calories are in it but I am sure it is a lot less then 1200 especially when you use a lot of asparagus and less fettuccine and only eat a small portion serving, no one says you need to gouge yourself till you are stuffed of course you need to add more garlic for the taste… there are many receipes that can be changed and made a lot more healthy, that is what the people both here and in the USA need ot be taught…..I know I had to teach myself how to change a lot of my receipes in order to be able to manage both my weight and diabetes……PS: these things can be taught in the 3 day course on how to manage your diabetes.
I am also happy that the HCR got passed so that no one need to suffer or go bankrupt in the states just because they get sick
I have to agree with you that the HCR is not the best but it is a start. A badly needed one at that. As far as restaurants posting calorie counts goes, that’s great! Now I’ll know exactly what high calorie foods to order when I go out to eat. With any luck I might hit 150 lbs for the first time in my life.
.-= Kirk M´s last blog ..Moving to Australia =-.
I think it is very nice and informative article. I agree with you and thanks for this nice sharing. calories intake is a serious problem of concern.