Study: Even when calorie count is known, consumers don't alter the way they eat
Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comMenu nutrition labels don't change habits
Seeded on Fri Jan 14, 2011 5:51 PM EST (msnbc.com)
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Knowing the calorie and fat count has made a big difference in what I eat. There are many processed foods that I loved, but when I saw a calorie count of 670 for a pot pie, I stopped eating it. This information has been very valuable in maintaining my weight. I no longer yo-yo.
Surprise surprise. Our self anointed Sheppard’s have discovered that we, the sheep, are not taking heed of all the labeling they’ve mandated. I suppose they’ll now deem it necessary for stronger, more direct methods such as levying taxes on whatever they consider to be unhealthy because, after all, we the sheep are clueless when it comes to what’s best for us. Thank god for those Sheppard’s, they will show us the way.
Posting this nutritional information may not matter because many people don't know the maximum number of calories (or fat grams) they can consume without gaining weight. People also overestimate how many calories they can "burn" with exercise.
Fat people are only fooling themselves when they claim that they're only a few pounds overweight. Yes, losing weight is hard and keeping it off takes effort too. But your body (and health) will thank you for it.
I actually live in this area, and go to this place. But, I order my food without sour cream (extra fat, plus, hey, I don't like it). I do order the same thing all the time, but even before the labelling, I quit drinking sodas - not worth the calories or money. Water is free there.
Now when Red Robin started adding calories, I changed my order. Fries - no way, they will substitute cole slaw. Again, no sodas. Or milkshakes. Or dessert. And nothing with bacon on it - I was amazed, and I'm pretty knowledgable about healthy foods.
I think there should be labeling that states the number of calories plus what it takes to burn those calories.
why don't you study that on your own, I am tired of more over regulation, the cost to figure it all out on my tax dollars and it being assumed I am a moron and can't think for myself.
bh0673....I totally agree (partly). If people wanna stuff their face with bacon, salt and lard...go ahead. I don't need the Government to hold my hand.
However, it's the same morons who stuff their face with junk that go to the doctors more often, have more health problems, and cause the insurance rates to skyrocket. Just because you eat a salad at a restaurant doesn't mean you are eating healthier. You are still consuming a ton of fat and calories mixed in with a few fruits and veggies.
If I want to know what I'm eating, I make it myself. Yeah I miss the taste of McDonald's quarter pounder with cheese, but it's death in a wrapper. I make other things I enjoy just as much without the additives, preservatives and fat.
Remember next time you sit down with some taco bell...garbage in, garbage out. Treat your body well and it will treat you well.
Labels will not help much.
Menus and food don't control what you eat and weigh. You do.
Actually, I use an iPhone app called Lose It to help me identify and track calories - from food and exercise.
All you need to know is:
If it tastes good, spit it out!
Cruel irony isn't? We are hard wired to love fatty, sweet, and salty foods.
Brad, not really. We have 2 million years of evolution on a subsistance diet. We were wired to eat a lot when the fruit was ripe, the Mammoth was killed and when the foods were plentiful because there would be that time when food would be scarce. Our ancestors couldn't drive down to McD's and get a double quarter pounder with cheese. He needed to track and hunt to get his calories.
2 million years of a hunter/gatherer diet is not changed by a mere 10,000 years of civilization with ever increasing abundance, especially the last 100-200 years.
Posting the nutritional information my not help those who aren't going to care anyway but they a definitely a plus for those of us who are trying to eat better. There are too many things on menu that seem healthy until you realize that they take your grilled steak/chicken and dip it in butter before they cook it. Resturant cooking styles are so varied it makes it really hard to know it what you're getting.
People will when they have health problems; then, food label is important to them.
Food label means a lot when one has D.M. HTN, CHF, obesity, TB, infectious diseases, SBS, TPN dependent, Debub.stage III, IV, ...
Food label means a lot for I know exactly what I have taken, a balanced nutritional diet.
thinking about what you eat even without a label can do the same thing, lets see should I buy the processed white bread or the whole grain. Should I buy the Cheerios or the Frosted Cheerios, hmmm maybe I should look at the lable to be sure.
I don't know what other people do, but I often put food back on the grocery shelf after I see the fat content. I will react the same to restaurant food once I can see the facts.
Too many of these restaurants trick people into thinking they are eating something healthy, like a delicious salad, when in fact the "salad" contains more fat than they should consume in 3 days of full meals.
I get tired of the experts assuring us that we're all too stupid to make good choices if given the information, so it's best if we just remain ignorant.
It isn't the salad but what is in the salad and the dressing. Don't add the meat and cheese and use oil and vinegar or again think before you eat. Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli, carrots I can go on are not fattening, oh but then we smother it in salad dressing and wonder why we don't lose weight, duh!
Good point, bh0673.
Personally, I don't eat the crap at all. But many people do choose a salad in restaurants, thinking they are making a wise choice. .
Fat... lol. You must be one of those people that was taught that fat is bad and so you run around buying all that fat free junk that is even worse for you than fat.
Saturated fat IS bad. It mixes with cholesterol and clogs your arteries. If you have significant stress in your life, causing your body to release adrenaline and cortisol, the effect is even stronger.
That's a well-established medical fact. Period.
Fake fat made in the laboratory is probably also dangerous, if that's what you mean by fat free. But certainly, anyone who cares about their health will routinely choose foods that are low in fat, sugar, and salt.
Personally I don't care what the calorie count is, I know when I am eating something fattening and when I am eating something healthy. I don't need someone telling me I am a grown up and need to be responsible for what I eat. As far as the obesity issue, maybe it isn't diet but rather mentality foods were just as fatty, sugery, processed and bad for us 40 years ago and obesity wasn't a problem maybe instead of being a busy body mommy government we need to address the social issues that have changed instead of the food that hasn't. I will say this in the 80's I ate McDonalds almost everyday, for a year in their I had an egg mcmuffin meal for breakfast, a big mac meal for lunch and a cheese burger meal in the car on the way home from work and never gained a pound, maybe because I was active and not sedentary, maybe it was my metabolism but whatever it was I never had a weight problem till I was in my 50's this year. I wasnn't obese but overweight so I started working out twice a week and I LOST 16POUNDS SO FAR SINCE NOVEMBER WITHOUT WATCHING CALORIES OR CHANGING MY DIET, WOW WHAT A CONCEPT GETTING OFF MY A** AND WORKING OUT INSTEAD OF BLAMING THE FOOD I EAT! PEOPLE NEED TO GROW UP AND BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEMSELVES FIRST.
It sure as heck makes a difference for me. It ruins my enjoyment of a meal if I know it has two days worth of calories in it, so I order something else.
Warning labels on anything from toys to guns have not proven to be effective. Warning labels on goods and services are only used as a disclaimer to protect the owner or maker from lawsuits. Use at your own risk is the American way.
That is exactly right. I'd want protected from the stupidity of alot of people too!!
People who actually read labels are people who are already in touch with balancing their intake of carbs, calories, fats, etc. Sure, I'd like to know how much fat and calories are in my McDonald's double cheesburger so when I do allow myself that monthly junk food indulgence, I know what to eat at dinner to balance things out.
But for those who don't even know what their optimal calorie intake should be, a nutrition label means bupkus. I read labels cause I like to know when I prepare my meals exactly how much protein, carbs, fat, etc. I am ingesting. You'd be surprised at some foods out there that you'd think had high nutritional value that don't (like canned fruit coctail, canned peaches, etc.). The person that just eats to eat and has no connection to their nourishment well being isn't going to be swayed to actually think about their meal habits just cause a calorie label is posted. Might sound weird to say this, but having a good relationship with food and valuing how you see your plate is something we treat with indifference.
Too bad. I love to eat. Thoroughly enjoy nourishing myself
#1 - It's "King County", not "Kings County" #2 - WA Seeing the calorie count has altered my choice on several occasions.
Of course this doesn't work. Nothing passive will ever work. The fact is America is doomed to be an obese, gluttonous society. They should make the labels have a back ground color. Green, yellow, and red based on their dietary benefit with a calorie-to-macronutrient ratio taken into account. Eat all the green you want, careful with the yellow, and put the red back. You don't want your product to be labeled red? Than fix it an make it healthier. Of course, this is America so the Lobbies will get involved and change the FDA opinion on food for the worse anyways so 'red' will end up being 'green' or 'yellow'. We just end up regressing further and opening up a whole new bag of problems. Besides, you could tell a majority of people here that what they are eating will kill them in one year, and they would eat it anyways. It's disgusting.
I like the idea of labes being colored.....good idea. I myself just try to stay away from the middle of the aisles in the store. The perimeter of the store mainly has the most nutritious and healthy food anyway, fresh veggies and lean cuts of meat. I think I'm lucky in a way, because I love love love vegetables. But I do snack occasionaly, and exercise as well....I just avoid anything in a box as much as possible....find a plan you can stick with and you'll be okay..
It's helped me tremendously! I definitely eat the lower calorie stuff if given the information.
You want to change peoples eating habits? Weigh them when they are 18 and tie their tax rate to their weight. The fatter you get the more you pay. They can apply and exception to those with actual genetic problems. You know the 2% of the population that actually has that.
Excellent suggestion!!!! I am lucky though, I would be at the same tax rate.
Oh please. To expect people to instantly change behaviour (even after a year) in the face of DECADES of fast food restaurants' loading their dishes with addictive additives (salt, sugar, etc.), is absurd!!!! We are being POISONED by the food, pharmeceutical, and chemical industries - WAKE UP!
I have food management problems - love the bad stuff, even though I am fairly well-educated and I know that it is not good for me.
But if I sit down in a restaurant and see on the menu that one meal is 2,000 calories and another is 1000, I will get the lower calorie meal. Likewise when shopping I often make a choice based on the calorie count. So it does make a difference, and not just to me but for others I know.
The point is, that people should have the information readily available in order to make whichever choice they want.
This was a poor study and results are limited to due the limited scope of the study. It proves nothing except that most folks who eat at the studied restaurant are not changing their eating habits after one year. Broader studies will have better more meaningful results.
Well duhhhhhhhhh! Did anyone really think the people who overeat, kids and adults who sit all day playing games, and drive to the store for more chips and soda and park the absolute closest to the door READ the labels? AND give a crap what the label says if they do!
People are FAT because they eat to much, sit to much, drink to much, drive to much, do NO physical labor, and given a choice, (which the kids do in school) will eat the worst kinds of food they can stuff in their mouths.
Putting a little label that is so hard to read and understand on the package was as useful as tits on a bu*l.
"Idiocracy" strikes again.....
I have lived in Canada, USA, and England. America's food is so disgustingly processed and full of chemicals and salt, it is no wonder there are so many problems with weight and other issues. It is difficult to avoid hitting your daily amounts of salt intake for example in any given meal. It truly is the only country in the world with this problem.
European food was so natural and unprocessed, relatively speaking. Canada is a bit of a hybrid, but much closer to America than Europe. Downside to unprocessed food is that it expires quickly, but that's an fair trade-off once you adapt to it.
People need to start cooking meals with ingredients and stop shoving frozen food into microwaves or doing drive throughs.
I heartily disagree - it sure has worked at Starbucks. My daughter is a manager, and since January 1, there has been a HUGE decline in the purchase of pastries, pound cake, cookies and donuts. I knew that the pound cake was almost 500 calories per slice, so I stopped eating it years ago. When people come into SB's to order coffee, they now think twice before ordering a pastry. Those calories jump out at you! I love the oatmeal raisin cookies, but they are 390 calories. I don't need that with my latte so I won't order them anymore. And I thought they were the "healthy" ones!
It may not make a difference at McDonald's or Taco Bell, but it sure has made a difference at Starbucks.
As mindless eaters, we make poor choices about our eating. We eat inattentively, for the wrong purposes, and lack power and control. We eat in response to sadness or stress. This lack of skill with eating causes imbalances, weight concerns and unhappiness.
Mindful eating is very pleasant. We sit beautifully and eat slowly. We are aware of the people that are sitting around us. We are aware of the food on our plates and enjoy the food in ways that make us feel free and delighted.
When we learn to eat mindfully, we correct the imbalances and learn to make good choices naturally. The new skills allow us to recapture and reclaim the joy of food. When you are so closely in touch with what is going on inside, you know the exact moment you are satisfied rather than stuffing or starving yourself.
Mindfulminute Mark Fontaine