Navigating the Fast Food Maze

Highly accessibleLess accessible ConvenientLess convenient Great tastingNot as good tasting Promoted heavilyNot promoted InexpensiveMore expensive Fast FoodsHealthy Foods

Percent of Food Spending Used on Fast Food

Total Food Spending Is Increasing (billions) Away from home

Number of Fast Food Restaurants in the U.S. Paeratakul, JADA 2003:103:1332-8

Percent of adults who are overweight or obese 2/3 of adults are overweight or obese 67%

Life Expectancy in the U.S. 2-5 year decline in life expectancy

Is Fast Food to Blame?

People Who Eat Fast Food: l Eat more fat l Eat more saturated fat l Eat fewer fruits and vegetables l Have more body fat

l People who live near fast food restaurants are more likely to eat more fast food. l People who have more fast food restaurants in their neighborhood are more likely to have heart disease and die early. l States with the most fast food outlets per square mile have the highest rates of obesity

Calories Children Eat with Fast Food or at Home

The most common vegetable consumed?

25% of all vegetables eaten in the U.S.

Fast Food Reaches Africa

COMPUTERS Reach Africa

Nintendo Reaches Africa

“We always, always have kid- related programs.” Mary Miller, McDonald’s VP

Childhood Obesity l 27% of children are overweight (CDC, 2003)

Food quantity has changed (serving sizes)

8 oz12 oz16 oz20 oz34 oz

16 oz32 oz44 oz52 oz64 oz 48 Teaspoons Sugar

French Fries 20 Years AgoToday 210 Calories 2.4 ounces 610 Calories 6.9 ounces

Turkey Sandwich 20 Years AgoToday 320 calories 820 calories

Courtesy of Dr. Kelly Brownell

U.S. government’s entire budget for nutrition education is one-fifth the advertising budget for… Nestle, 2002 Altoids mints

Courtesy of Dr. Kelly Brownell

Texas Double Whopper Calories1050 Saturated fat26 grams 130% of daily Fat grams69 grams 106% of daily Sodium1910 mg 80% of daily

A Few Fast Food Facts l Everyone eats fast food l Fast food is marketed everywhere l It is almost impossible to avoid it l We need to learn to live with it

Calories.. Who’s counting? McDonald’s hamburger McDonald’ s Big Mac O’Charley’s chicken tenders dinner Shoney’s deluxe pancake plate Lone Star Steakhouse Lone Star wings Denny’s mini burgers w/ onion rings Chili’s awesome blossom Nathan’s Famous seafood sampler

How about dinner and dessert? Romano’s Macaroni Grill New York cheesecake with caramel fudge sauce Romano’s Macaroni Grill Spaghetti & Meatballs dinner 4,030 Both

Start Walking McDonald’s hamburger McDonald’s Big Mac O’Charley’s chicken tenders dinner Shoney’s deluxe pancake plate Lone Star Steakhouse Lone Star wings Denny’s mini burgers w/ onion rings Chili’s awesome blossom Nathan’s Famous seafood sampler hours

Food Marketing = $25 Billion 5-a-day = $1 million

Ronald McDonald is recognized by nearly 96% of American children A child's first request for a product typically occurs at about 24 months of age Ad agencies acknowledge that toddlers and preschool children have considerable purchase influence through “nag factor” l Children influence nearly half of McDonald’s visits

Pres., National Restaurant Assn “Personal responsibility is a very important part of this because we can’t look at someone else to solve our problems.”

Former DHHS Secretary Tommy Thompson “… we have to continue to work hard to spread the gospel of personal responsibility.”

Surgeon General “It’s about personal responsibility”

So, What’s Wrong With Fast Food? l It tastes great l It’s very convenient l It’s relatively inexpensive

Western Diet Pattern

Prudent Diet Pattern

Western vs Prudent A Western diet has significantly higher risk of: l Type II diabetes l Cancer l Cardiovascular disease l Premature death

How the Stop & Go Fast Food Nutrition Guide was Developed

Red l Any food with more than 1 gram of trans fats l Any food with more than 13 grams of saturated fat l Any food with processed meats

Green l Foods not red with whole grains, fresh fruits, vegetables, l Healthy oils (french fries fried in healthy oils) l Many deli type sandwiches

Yellow l Foods not green and not red l Sodium and cholesterol content can push the food to green or red

Good Guys (trans fat free) l Wendy’s l Au Bon Pain l Jason’s Deli l Panera Bread l California Pizza Kitchen l Ruby Tuesday l Chick-Fil-A

Bad Guys (have expressed no desire to remove trans fats) l Starbucks, l Friendly’s l Popeyes l Taco Bell l KFCs getting sued

WORST Breakfast specialty Traditional fast food with trans fats Mexican Italian Pizza Traditional fast food without trans fats Healthy Asian foods Sandwich shops BEST

WORST Denny’s, Waffle House Burger King, KFC, McDonald's Taco Bell, Del Taco, Taco John’s Sbarro Pizza Hut Chick-Fil-A, In-N-Out Panda Express Subway, Blimpies, Boston Market BEST

Will Making Healthy Selections Make Any Difference?

Lifestyle Change Program

Fruit and Vegetable Servings

Whole Grain Servings

Percent of Calories from Fat

Grams of Saturated Fat

Sodium (mg)

Total Calories

BMI

Systolic Blood Pressure Reductions mm/Hg

Diastolic Blood Pressure Reductions mm/Hg

Total Cholesterol Reductions mg/dl

Glucose Reductions mg/dl