I don't know how I missed this seeing as it has been a really slow week, but on Tuesday California became the first state Tuesday to require chain restaurants to post calorie content of menu items in chain restaraunts. I have posted about this before and if I labeled my posts I would link you to that but I dont so you just have to take my word for it. I personally thought that posting nutritional information was a good idea, but there is a very adamant side of this debate that strongly feels it is stupid and a waste of time. These are the reasons I disagree with those arguments:
Argument 1: People can look that information up online if they want to see it - Yes for the most part they can, however I do not carry a print out with me of every fast food chain and restaraunt nor do I know at the beginning of the day where I will end up eating so that is not an effecient or realistic way to find nutritional information. Also see youtube clip below to see how difficult this information can be to read. It is a lot easier on the consumer if the nutritional information is listed on the menu board.
Argument 2: People know that fast food makes them fat and if they go to a fast food restaraunt they arent there to eat healthy - Restaraunts, particularly fast food restaraunts, have done an increasingly better job at providing healthier food choices for their customers. Unfortunately, people are not as nutritionally savy as we would like to believe. Yes everyone knows that fries arent good for you, but there are a lot of menu items that are deceptively bad for you. For example the Sante Fe Chicken Sandwich at Carls Jr has 610 calories and 32 grams of fat. The BBQ Chicken sandwich has 360 calories, 4.5 grams of fat. Most people wouldnt know there is such a large nutritional difference between the two because they are thinking it is a chicken sandwich, it cant be that bad. Knowing nutritional information is not as common sense as people would like to believe. Salads are as deceptive as they come too. Again people think a salad is healthy but Chevy's has a salad that is 1,228 calories and 77 grams fo fat! That is waaaay worse than the average consumer would expect. Even though I like to eat healthy, I also like to be able to go to a fast food restaraunt and pick something up quickly too and fast food restaraunts have healthier options that I would like to be aware of.
Argument 3: Government is getting all up in our business and it isnt their place to try to make people eat better, free will yada yada - Two of every three American adults are overweight or obese according to the Center For Disease Control, obviously we are collectively not doing so well on the fat thing on our own. I dont see it as government interferring with my life, they are just helping me become more informed so I can make my better choices if I so choose. The Government is not going to make you order something healthier. If you dont care how many calories you are consuming then dont look at the information. If it bothers you that it is up there then you are probably having some guilt that you should be eating healthier but arent. Maybe you should listen to that little voice inside your head that is nagging you a little more. Personally seeing something had a high calorie count would prevent me from eating it, and I am not the only one who feels that way. Some people actually want to know what they are putting in their bodies, crazy enough. I realistically know that there will be a population of people who dont care either way but I think it may make a difference in the lives of some people. People arent going to loose weight overnight in droves, but overtime the more aware you are the more your eating habits may change.
There is still no information on what this will cost restaruants monetarily or how that will effect the price of food for the consumer but I dont see how it could make that big of an impact. The cost of obesity is a a huge problem and there is no one single way to fix it. Children need a better education on nutrition and exercise, there need to be more opportunities for children and adults to be active, there needs to be a wider variety of ealthier menu items, etc, etc. This is a very small componant that probably wont make a dent in the problem by itself, but it is a start. Let the consumer be more informed if they choose. Knowing nutritional information is not easy regardless of the popular belief that it is common sense and since we are always complaining about being so busy, save the consumer some time and some calories and thank you for Guvanator for making that happen.
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