Guess how many calories you eat for the “average” restaurant meal? 1,128, according to a 2013 study published in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Knowing how to eat healthy when eating out can make or break your health goals (for most people it’s clearly the latter). Navigating menus and finding healthy restaurant food can be a tough task though.
This tutorial is designed to help you do just that. I’ve analyzed some of the most popular fast food and chain restaurants in the country and outlined the healthiest and unhealthiest things on their menu. I’ll think you’ll be pretty shocked at what you find out. Most restaurant dishes are overloaded with calories, sodium, refined carbohydrates, fats, and artificial ingredients, as you’re about to see.
Fast food has become a staple in the average American diet. There are now over 25,000 fast food chains and 200,000 total fast food restaurants in the U.S., an increase of more than 1,000% since 1970. Americans now spend around $190 billion on fast food each year. Coincidentally, obesity rates are at an all-time high.
Does the fast food industry deserve all the blame? No. But they’re certainly a major culprit in the obesity epidemic. Consider this:
- The average serving size for burgers, fries, and sodas has more than tripled since the 1970’s.
- The fast food industry spent more than $4.2 billion dollars in 2009 on TV advertising and other media.
- The average preschooler (2-5 years) saw 2.8 TV ads per day for fast food; children (6-11 years) saw 3.5; and teens (12-17 years) saw 4.7.
- Teens between the ages of 13 and 18 purchased 800 to 1,100 calories in an average fast food visit.
So if you want to learn how to eat healthy while eating out check out this comprehensive tutorial!
How to Choose Healthy Food at Restaurants
- Restaurant Foods with Shockingly High Sodium Content
- Top 5 Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants
- Applebees Nutrition Facts
- Arbys Nutrition Facts
- Buffalo Wild Wings Nutrition Facts
- Burger King Nutrition Facts
- California Pizza Kitchen Nutrition Facts
- Cheesecake Factory Nutrition Facts
- Coldstone Creamery Nutrition Facts
- Dunkin Donuts Nutrition Facts
- KFC Nutrition Facts
- McDonalds Nutrition Facts
- Olive Garden Nutrition Facts
- Outback Steakhouse Nutrition Facts
- Panera Bread Nutrition Facts
- Pizza Hut Nutrition Facts
- Quiznos Nutrition Facts
- Starbucks Nutrition Facts
- Subway Nutrition Facts
- Taco Bell Nutrition Facts
- TGI Fridays Nutrition Facts
- Tim Hortons Nutrition Facts
- Wendys Nutrition Facts
Want More?
Check out one of my other free tutorials … and sign up for new newsletter below while you’re at it!