Since this past summer, New York City requires restaurant chains with 15 or more outlets to post calorie count information right on their menus next to the price. Looks like the effect has been nothing short of eye-opening (and mouth-closing!). The New York Times, in a recent article titled “Calories Do Count“, reports that the sight of those “restaurant-portion-sized calorie-counts” have caused people to forgo their “usuals” and instead opt for more healthful choices.
And in line with classic demand-supply economics, the restaurants have started to offer lower-calorie meals that are appropriately smaller-portioned:
Restaurants and food companies are lightening recipes and portion sizes. Starbucks, for example, claims to have saved the nation 17 billion calories since last October by swapping 2 percent milk for whole. [...] Dunkin’ Donuts recently added a low-calorie egg white breakfast sandwich, Così is using low-fat mayonnaise and McDonald’s large French fries have dropped to 500 calories this year from 570 last year. [New York Times]
While it’s true that calories alone are not the only cause for the rising obesity in this country, it is still a major factor and most efforts to reduce body fat will be in vain if eating is not controlled. Total calorie count is still of paramount importance in the weight-loss equation and it pays to keep that count to about 2000 a day for the average adult (a little more/less depending on your gender and daily activity level).
Turns out people consumed way more calories than they could ever expect from many of their daily staples:
The number of calories in food shocked most New Yorkers, according to a September survey by the health department. A Starbucks blueberry scone delivers 480 calories. A Quiznos regular tuna melt is 1,270 calories. Wraps, the refuge for low-carb sandwich lovers, can top 800 calories. Bagels pack more calories than doughnuts. A large bucket of buttered movie popcorn has more than half the calories anyone should eat in a day.
The good news is that more and more cities and states across the country are following New York City’s excellent lead and there are even proposals (like the Labeling Education and Nutrition Act) that would require a uniform, standardized nationwide postings of nutrition information (where do I sign?!).
With the economy in shambles, restaurant-owners see at least one advantage of this newfound craze for smaller portions: they are continuing to charge the same price for less food and customers don’t seem to mind.
A sustainable business for already cash-strapped restaurants and better health for consumers? This thing might just work! Now what’s the rest of the country waiting for?
