Thu Apr 15, 2004 6:12 pm by Indy11
From the NY Times
Walk Off Those Calories: Another Alternative to the Big Mac
By MARIA NEWMAN
Published: April 15, 2004
First, McDonald's gave supersized french fries and soft drinks the boot. Now, it is trying to get consumers to push away from the table and go out and exercise.
Like many other fast-food restaurant chains espousing the less-is-more, healthy food approach, the maker of Big Macs and Happy Meals has unveiled a new menu item designed to get adults to eat healthier and exercise.
McDonald's is calling its new selection the ``Go Active! Adult Happy Meal.'' It will include a salad, bottled water, and even a pedometer and literature explaining the benefits of walking.
Along with the adult happy meal, McDonald's is also trotting out a broad new marketing and educational program to help children and adults find a ``better food/energy balance in their lives,'' company officials said today at a news conference in Washington D.C.'s National Press Club.
``We want to help adults achieve the right balance between their daily calorie intake and physical activity, and to help children adopt active, balanced lifestyle habits early on,'' said Michael Roberts, the president of McDonald's USA.
McDonald's action comes at a time when the fast-food industry is dealing with widespread criticism and legal challenges about its contribution to poor health and obseity. Surveys and government studies show that more than 60 percent of adults and 20 percent of children are now overweight or obese, and consumers filing lawsuits blaming fast-food makers for their wide girths.
KFC has tried to market its fried chicken as part of a healthy diet. Ads for Subway Restaurants show real people holding loose-fitting clothing and bragging that they lost weight by sticking to a healthy sandwich diet. And Wendy's is touting its spinach salads.
The companies say they are not responding to public criticism or the threat of lawsuits. But there is undoubtedly more pressure on them to offer healthier fare. Two bills before Congress would require restaurants to provide diners with nutritional information about meals.
Last month, officials for Ruby Tuesday, the restaurant chain, announced that it would become the first chain to provide information on its menus about the amounts of fat, calories, net carbohydrates and fiber for every dish.
McDonald's officials said their company's balanced lifestyles platform is a response to calls from the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the private sector to become more involved in finding solutions to the obesity issue.
``Poor eating habits and inactivity are contributing factors to Americans' declining health,'' Tommy G. Thompson, Secretary of Health and Human Services, said today in lauding McDonald's. ``There are small steps that we can take everyday to protect our health, including being physically active every day and eating a nutritious diet. This announcement by McDonald's is a positive step toward helping Americans make healthier choices.`
Some people who study American eating habits said it was easy to be cynical about the changes restaurants are making in their menus.
``I don't think motive makes any difference,'' said Dr. Gary Foster, the clinical director of the weight and eating disorders program at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. ``Small changes are good. Fast food restaurants are frequently used by the American public. If there is any change in the right direction, it's going to be helpful.''
``Of course they could do more,'' he said. ``But they're not hospitals, they're fast food chains.''
Dr. Lisa Young, who has studied portion size for the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, said fast food restaurants should take a lead role in trying to change American eating habits, because more people are dining out, and often on the run.
And she said it is possible for consumers to make healthy meal choices even at fast-food places.
``If you are in control, you can do it,'' she said. But she cautioned that diners have to be conscious of portion sizes and the little extras that go into particular meals that are marketed as low-fat or healthy.
``Even salads - some of them are very fattening if you get the cheese and the croutons and the salad dressing,'' she said. `It can be more fattening than a single hamburger. I think fast food restaurants are making an effort by at least offering choices, but it can be deceptive for consumers.''
McDonald's will make the adult happy meals available next month. But will consumers buy them? One lunchtime diner who had just scarfed down donuts for lunch because he said it was handy, wasn't so convinced when he was told that the new happy meal for adults would include a pedometer and exercise advice. ``What do you actually eat in this thing?'' he said.
Some parents say they will welcome the healthy option. Tom White, a business owner from Pittsburgh, said he is like many parents he sees at McDonald's, who eat nothing while their children snack on burgers and fries. For several years Mr. White has made a ritual of taking his daughter, Nora, now 10, to McDonald's for daddy-daughter time.
`I decided when I turned 50 that I didn't need any more french fries and Big Macs,'' he said. `I'm not going to go out of my way and go to McDonald's just to order that new happy meal, but if I'm there anyway, and I can say, give me the parent-to-go, and it has a bottled water and exercise information, I'd rather get that than nothing.''
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It may be smart for business but..... I can't help but think that this will encourage more lawsuits.
