Channel Button

There are 26 articles on this title. You are reading the article ranked and rated #7 by Helium's members.

Debate_icon

Health & Fitness   >

Nutrition & Health Issues

Get a Widget for this title

Should chain restaurants in Connecticut be required to include calories on menus?

Results so far:

Yes
54% 154 votes Total: 287 votes
No
46% 133 votes

Most people may delude themselves about their total intake of calories by day's end, but they have a pretty good idea of the calorie difference between a garden salad and a large slice of pecan pie. Forcing a restaurant chain to print the calorie count for each item they sell is unnecessary and definitely not cost effective.

There are different reasons why people eat at chain restaurants; some are traveling, some are out shopping and running errands when hunger hits, others are celebrating, and some just love the taste of the food they buy there. Arguably, the majority of people do not eat three meals a day, seven days a week at a chain restaurant. Since this argument can be reasonably made, I see no reason for this added burden on restaurant chains. Without doubt, the shock of totalling the calories of the average fast food meal would send the weight conscious running for the exit door. Then again, those who are watching their waistlines are eating healthy already.

Personal responsibility; we do not see those two words together in a sentence very often anymore. We have become a nation of people forever looking to someone else to accept responsibility for the actions we take that harm us in some way. Much information is available in several places for those who desire to know the calorie count of a specified amount of a particular food. Those who are diet conscious usually keep a list of foods they eat regularly and their calorie count. How many people would ever taste a thick, vanilla malt with all those extra goodies that you can have added if the menu all but yelled, "Hey dummy, this malt has 1400 calories. If you eat that burger with fries, you will have consumed three days' worth of calories in one meal"?

The truth is, we have a general idea of the calorie count of our favorite foods. Requiring restaurants to post the calorie counts of all foods served would have a huge negative impact on the financial side. Not many people would like the idea of others knowing how many calories they are having for lunch, dinner, or whatever. There are still some things we would like to keep in the back of our minds and not open for all the public to see. Imagine going to a restaurant on a first date. No matter what you order, your date will know the total calorie count. A better thing for restaurants to do is have a booklet available at every table with a calorie count for every dish they serve and state the exact weight, measurement, etc. of the foods served. Knowing that macaroni and cheese has 210 calories per serving does not help much if you are unaware that the restaurant serves you two and a half servings per order. No one should have to be concerned about calorie count if we returned to eating the proper portions of food instead of super-sizing everything.

Learn more about this author, Barbara Stanley.
Contact this writer Click here to send this author comments or questions.


Below are the top articles rated and ranked by Helium members on:

Should chain restaurants in Connecticut be required to include calories on menus?

No
  • 1 of 13

    by Teresa Aira

    Chain restaurants should not be required to post calorie counts on their menus. While awareness of the number of calories

    read more

  • 2 of 13

    by Lisa Lai

    Should the chain restaurant also take your blood pressure to evaluate whether or not they can recommend the daily special?

    read more

Yes
  • 1 of 13

    by Terpsichore

    It's actually not only the calorie count that should be included on menus of chain restaurants - it should also include the

    read more

  • 2 of 13

    by John Finken

    Chain restaurants have been ignoring a major responsibility to the people of Connecticut since the first fast-food restaurant

    read more

Add your voice

Know something about Should chain restaurants in Connecticut be required to include calories on menus??
We want to hear your view. Write_penWrite now!

135821

Featured Partner

Katrina's Angels

Katrina's Angels support communities affected by disasters by offering solutions to unmet needs and enhancing the rec...more

What is Helium? | Buy Web Content | Contact Us | Privacy | User agreement | DMCA | User Tools | Help | Community | Helium’s Official Blog | Link to Helium

Helium, Inc.
200 Brickstone Square Andover, MA 01810 USA