by Ryan McKeen
Last year, I was indifferent while the CT Legislature debated requiring restaurants to disclose nutritional information to patrons. Lazily, I bought the argument that people know that a bacon double cheeseburger is bad for them.
I figured the issue was worth revisiting here now that Congress has stepped in and passed federal legislation requiring restaurants with over 20 or more outlets to disclose calorie counts on menus. I’ve come around to fully supporting the measure and here’s why:
Everyone knows the Big Mac isn’t health food. It contains 576 calories without cheese. But it’s unfair to the Big Mac that it has become the poster food for the calorie disclosure debate. It’s nowhere close to Friendly’s Caramel Cinnamon Swirl French toast (hereinafter referred to as the “Friendly’s French Tort.”
The Friendly’s French Tort contains 2090 calories, 57 grams of fat, 374 grams of carbs, and 214 grams of sugar. That information comes right from Friendly’s website. Add another 110 calories if you’d like syrup with that.
Before reading that I knew the Friendly’s French Tort wasn’t a healthy option, but I had no idea just how bad it was. I exercise and watch what I eat. Nancy Clark’s “Nutrition for Marathoners” is on my coffee table. If I were ordering at Friendly’s, I would have guessed the French Tort was somewhere around 900 calories — an unhealthy choice at that — but under the right circumstances, I could fit it into my diet as a “treat.”
To put things in some perspective, I’m training for a marathon. I’ll need lots of fuel that comes in the form of calories to complete my 26.2-mile goal. Running a marathon, however, would barely (if at all) burn the number of calories in the French Tort with some syrup and a glass of orange juice.
Another way of looking at it: a stick of butter contains about 810 calories. The French Tort is more or less equal the calorie equivalent of 2.5 sticks of butter. I never would have guessed that.
With the new legislation, having the calorie information will allow me to make a healthier choice at the point of sale and I think that’s a good thing.