Yesterday, an article posted in the Wall Street Journal entitled, “Salads are nice, but burgers are what really sell,” started out with “Americans talk skinny but eat fat.” I like that first line and think it’s so true. I constantly hear women talk about constantly being on a diet, when their actions say otherwise. Or they’ll order a salad thinking that because it’s a salad it’s automatically healthy, when a lot of salads have tons of junk, and let’s not even talk about the dressing.
This article discusses the fact that despite many restaurants listing foods’ calorie content on menus, people still pick the unhealthy options. This is counter to a few articles I found showing that it indeed made a difference, but those articles were when the NY law first took effect, so maybe the shock value has worn off and people are back to their old ways (although this paper says that only 15% changed their meal choices back then).
Just like bodybuilders and dieters sometimes have cheat days or cheat meals, which are often on the weekends, many people make good choices at home but not at restaurants, which is a more common occurrence on weekends too.
Technomic, a food research firm, conducted a study last year and found that 47% of Americans want healthier items at restaurants, yet only 23% choose these foods. I would like to say that I am surprised by the disconnect or that I think things will change in the near future, but that is not the case. Apparently the cognitive dissonance is not strong enough to get people to change their behaviors and make better decisions.
Maybe that is why the KFC’s Double Down, consisting of bacon and cheese sandwiched between friend chicken, which contains 32 g of fat, is so popular and IHOP’s 1,180 calorie breakfast sampler – eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, hash browns and pancakes – is the number one seller at the chain. When I first heard of the Double Down, I thought it was a joke. People who eat these items aren’t on Man V Food (I love that show, btw); this is what they’re actually eating, perhaps on a regular basis.
It also explains why only 11% of parents who take their kids to McDonalds choose the apple slices over the friends in the Happy Meal.
People who are trying to eat healthy often don’t go to fast food restaurants, as one man said of himself, but the restaurants have changed their ways and do now offer some healthy alternatives. IHOP, for example, even has a Simple & Fit menu, which has not been as popular. Wendy’s and Domino’s have not fared any better. Domino’s even had a low carb pizza at the peak of the Atkins craze, and people still weren’t going for it (not that I think low carb is the way to go. It just drives the point home even more).
Hardee's and Carl's Jr. have salads and turkey burgers, but what is the best seller at Hardee’s? The Thickburger, one version of which is 1,170 cal, 83 g of fat (yes, you read the fat grams correctly) and consists of almost half a pound of beef, two different kinds of cheese, fried onions, and mayo.
The Cheesecake Factory’s “Skinnylicious” menu has done better, apparently.
Restaurants are making changes, adding healthier options, and are posting their calorie info on their menus (which will take effect nationally next year), on the wall, and/or online, but people are still choosing unhealthy, high calorie foods.
One potential explanation is that people are skeptical about claims of healthier options on fast food menus (i.e., that they really aren’t healthy). I have to admit, I am one of those people, as wrong as it may be. But I just avoid going to the restaurants altogether, or, if there for some reason, will still order what I think to be the healthiest option and to customize my order, semi-ensure that it is as healthy as possible.
As well, the article suggests mentions peer pressure and also the fact that that some people just want to treat themselves when going out. But people probably do not realize the extent of the damage they are doing. For example, if someone is trying to lose weight and eating at a deficit, they can completely undo that. That goes along with people always saying they’re on a diet but not really being on one (although some of these people make poor decisions daily, and not just when at restaurants or on occasion). More importantly, though, think about your health and what these foods are doing to your insides.
Restaurants “continue to straddle the line,” and that is driven by what consumers buy. We are the driving force. We can’t continue to put as much responsibility for the obesity epidemic and health problems on restaurants when they are offering healthier, lower calorie options as well as posting all the info. Sometimes restaurants take healthier foods off the menu because they just are not selling. Of course it would be nice if things like the Double Down weren’t even an option, and people do get tempted by and often give in to unhealthy foods, but people have to take responsibility for their part as well.
randi morse, randi.morse@gmail.com, newton, ma
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