Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Happy New Year! With a calorie count?

My first adventure eating out in 2011 made me very aware of the new California menu labeling law. The law requires that restaurants with more than 20 locations must display the calorie count of each item next on the menu (with some exclusions like farmer’s markets, schools…)

For more details see:

http://www.calrest.org/go/CRA/resources/emerging-matters/menu-labeling/overview-of-californias-menu-labeling-law1/

Well this week I made a trip to Islands Restaurant – I am not kidding myself that this is a healthy restaurant, but I always have figured there are good choices and it’s not as bad as fast food. I was shocked looking over the menu that most of their main dishes (including salads) were between 1000-1500 calories. That is a little crazy when you realize an average adult diet is based on approximately 2000 calories.

So lesson learned for me- when other people make your food, you really have no idea what is going in to what you are eating. They often make it delicious by adding super high calorie extras – mayonnaise, dressings, oil, and buttering buns to get them the right color. So in this new year I feel re-energized to make even more healthy meals at home and really start learning more about the foods I’m eating. Thank you new labeling law for giving me a jump-start back to the Farmer’s Market Diet.

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