Do you know how many calories are in your favorite fast food sandwich, cheeseburger or french fries? You might soon — even if you don’t want to.
Fast food and chain restaurants will be required to post the calorie information of its food. The mandate is part of the federal health care reform law and will require chains with 20 or more locations to include calorie counts on menus, menu boards and drive-throughs. The Food and Drug Administration will have a year to write the new rules, which means the law does not go into effect for at least another year.
“FDA sees menu labeling as an important tool to help people make more nutritious choices for themselves and their families. The agency has already begun talking with industry and other stakeholders to get their input on the provision, and we continue to welcome comments from others as we move forward in implementing the legislation,” FDA press officer Ira Allen wrote in an e-mail.
Local nutritionists and public policy experts are celebrating the health care reform law and the steps to combatting diabetes and obesity in the United States. Many of them said making informed decisions about food is really at the heart of this issue.
Jennifer Jordan, program coordinator for Chronic Disease Prevention at Lane County Public Health, is glad calorie information will soon be available to all Americans.
“People make different decisions when they know what they’re eating,” Jordan said. “People are concerned about food. This legislation will support good decisions.”
A majority of Oregonians support policy requiring fast food and restaurant chains to post calorie information, according to a poll conducted by the Northwest Health Foundation.
Oregon’s law, which passed in 2007, requires restaurants with 15 or more locations to provide calorie information to customers upon request. Then one year later, the restaurants would have to post this information for everyone on their menus or menu board. It is unclear how the federal law will impact this state law.
At least 60 percent of people in Oregon die because of chronic conditions caused by health problems related to smoking, lack of exercise and poor nutrition, Jordan said.
“The average American has no idea what their caloric intake is,” Steve Karner, nutritionist and owner of the Eugene-based Balanced Nutrition said. “Half of the kids I see are obese.”
Karner, who has worked with University athletes, fraternity members and Mr. Oregon candidates, said fast food is the worst thing people can eat. These foods include trans fat, which block arteries, as well as high rates of salt and sugar, which can cause heart problems. “These meals are not of high quality. They raise the sodium count to make the food taste good,” Karner said.
Panda Express, a popular spot with University students, has a Wok Smart program, which lists 18 items that have 250 or fewer calories. This information is available online and can be seen on its menu boards. The new federal law will not have much of an effect on business, senior manager of corporate relations Thien Ho said.
“It will make customers more knowledgeable. We respect that. People are smart enough to make choices for their own bodies,” she said. “It makes sense to us.”
University students seemed to support this regulation. “It’s a good idea. People are curious about what they’re eating,” Panda Express customer and University undergraduate Elizabeth Bergin said. But the regulation might not stop people from eating fast food altogether.
“I don’t know if it would change what I order,” University undergraduate Kim Woodrich said.
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