Will a national requirement for chain restaurants to post calorie counts sound the death knell for bacon cheeseburgers and double chocolate doughnuts?
The calorie-posting mandate, signed into law by President Barack Obama as part of the health care overhaul, assumes diners will feel the culinary equivalent of sticker shock when confronted with calorie counts for greasy, sugary and fatty foods.
Anti-obesity advocates also hope that forcing restaurants to reveal calorie counts will coax the chains to offer more healthful options.
The federal legislation will require chain restaurants 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 will supersede local laws.
Early studies do show some modest changes in consumer behavior in New York, which enacted its pioneering calorie-posting law in 2008. But whether the measure also is pushing more healthful items onto menus is less clear.
The law in Seattle and surrounding King County was enacted in January 2009. University of Washington epidemiologist Barbara Bruemmer, who is conducting the Seattle research, cautioned that it can take time for restaurants, particularly larger chains, to develop and introduce new items.
Chain restaurants have introduced scores of healthful menu items in recent years, but most say the changes are coincidental to calorie-posting laws, an effort to keep pace with consumer demand.
Cathy Nonas, who directs the New York City health department’s physical activity and nutrition programs noted these changes:
Dunkin’ Donuts launched its lower-calorie DDSmart options, KFC began selling grilled chicken, Starbucks switched to lower-fat milk for espresso-based drinks and McDonald’s cut its serving size for large french fries by 0.6 ounces.
Many public health researchers believe labeling laws will end up having at least some affect on fast-food formulations. One researcher noted that packaged food manufacturers reduced the amount of trans-fats in their products after being required to list the levels.
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