How to Choose Healthy Fast Food Options

You’ve probably noticed that more restaurants and fast food chains are beginning to include their nutritional information on their menus. Due to the Affordable Care Act, this is mandatory. There are a few studies out there that find that while it may not decrease the amount of calories people eat, it will help them make healthier choices. Many people think the best healthy fast food option is a salad or a wrap, but sometimes you may be better off ordering a hamburger and fries.
Selvera’s Wellness’ Senior R.D., Amanda Foti, weighed in on this topic by providing the best choices to make when you find your only option is fast food. Foti points out that it will affect the restaurants more than the consumers for these reasons:

• There is a lot of confusion in society about what’s “healthy.” Even though the nutritional information is there for consumers, it doesn’t help them understand what nutrients to pay attention to, how much to eat, what to eat and what to avoid.
• Those who choose to eat at fast food restaurants often aren’t concerned about healthy eating habits.
• For those who occasionally eat at fast food restaurants, they generally choose it for convenience or when a craving hits. Therefore, they already have the idea that this is a “treat” for them. Nutrition facts won’t change a person’s mind once they’ve decided this is their “splurge.”

In a spot where the drive-thru is your only option? Foti recommends the following items at five different restaurants:




Do you find that nutrition labeling at restaurants helps you make healthier choices? Or do you order what you’re going to order regardless of the info provided? —Erika