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WHAT'S NEW
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Sensible choices on fast-food menus
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Does eating fast food mean it has to be unhealthy?
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By Anjali Kapoor
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The next time you find you are too busy to cook a meal and decide to order fast food, take a moment to consider your meal selection. A hectic lifestyle sometimes means that you don't have the time to eat sensibly.
The Tracking Nutrition Trends survey, conducted by the Ottawa-based National Institute of Nutrition, found that only 53 per cent of Canadians said nutrition is extremely important to them when choosing what to eat. In the same survey, 21 per cent of Canadians rated their eating habits as fair or poor. The factors that contribute to these low ratings are a busy lifestyle (19 per cent) and eating fast food or take-out food (12 per cent).
Many fast food restaurants realize that people want healthy alternatives when it comes to grabbing a quick bite to eat.
"Fast food can contribute to good nutrition if you are willing to make the healthy choices," says Dr. Venket Rao, professor emeritus of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto and consulting nutrition specialist on the McDonald's Lighter Choices menu.
Dr. Judy Paisley, assistant professor of nutrition at Ryerson Polytechnic University in Toronto, says the trend toward eating fast food as a quick alternative to cooking has risen over the years. But she also points out that it is up to individuals to learn how to choose a proper healthy menu.
"Healthy menu choices will contain lots of vegetables and fruit, lean meat, whole grain products and low-fat dairy products," says Dr. Paisley.
Both Dr. Rao and Dr. Paisley say the guiding principles of a healthy diet are based on balance, variety and moderation.
"Don't be stressed out if you eat one fatty meal," says Dr. Rao. "Use common sense -- if you are going to eat a hamburger, don't have the shake and fries that go with it."
Dr. Rao says you should always look for healthy alternatives. His suggestion for a fast food menu is to combine meat or supplementary protein with vegetables or a salad.
"A good rule of thumb is eating food groups represented by different colours in a meal -- red, orange, green and yellow will cover your spectrum of fruits and vegetables," he says.
Of course, you should take a look at your overall eating habits as well. "Rather than focusing on the nutrient content of any single meal, it is more important to consider one's 'total diet,' or their food consumption over a period of several days," says Dr. Paisley.
Most restaurant chains have all of their nutritional information on their company websites. Take a look at how many calories and fat your favourite burger or sandwich may have -- or check out how those extra toppings and dressings can break down the nutritional value of your meal.
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