Archive for May, 2009

MEAL Act Would Require Calorie Labeling on Chain-Restaurant Menus and Menu Boards

WASHINGTON—Eating out would be a whole lot easier for nutrition-conscious customers in chain restaurants, if legislation introduced today by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) becomes law. The Menu Education and Labeling (MEAL) Act would require fast-food and other chain restaurants to post calories on menu boards and food display tags and calories, saturated plus trans fat, carbohydrates, and sodium on printed menus.

The bill has the strong support of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which has led the national campaign for menu labeling, including measures passed in New York City, California, Massachusetts and other jurisdictions.   The MEAL act would apply to chains with 20 or more outlets and would exclude small mom-and-pop restaurants and custom orders or temporary menu items at chain restaurants.

“Consumers play an impossible guessing game trying to make healthier choices in restaurants,” said CSPI nutrition policy director Margo Wootan. “Who would guess that a large chocolate shake at McDonald’s has more calories than two Big Macs or that a multigrain bagel at Dunkin’ Donuts has 140 more calories than a jelly donut?”

        Americans get a third of their calories from, and spend half of their food dollars on, meals outside the home.  At table-service chains like Ruby Tuesday, Macaroni Grill, and Chili’s, it’s easy to find 1,000-calorie appetizers, 1,000-calorie entrees, and 1,000-calorie desserts.  Not surprisingly, about two-thirds of American adults and a third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Access to nutrition information at restaurants is more important than ever, particularly given that a number of studies link eating out with higher caloric intake and obesity,” DeLauro said. “With few restaurants providing easy-to-use and easy-to-find nutrition information, the MEAL Act represents an incremental step toward combating increasing obesity rates.”

        Restaurant industry lobbyists have tried to capitalize on the popularity of menu labeling by writing a competing bill called the LEAN Act.  But far from promoting menu labeling, that bill would nullify the state and local measures already in effect and preempt others from being enacted in the future.  Health groups oppose it.

Labeling on packaged food, which was implemented 15 years ago this month, gives consumers nutrition information for foods eaten at home. It’s high time consumers have a few nutrition facts when eating out, Wootan said.

“Overweight, poor nutrition and diet-related diseases are public health threats of the first order – contributing to numerous chronic health conditions, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes and stroke,” Harkin said. “But the issues aren’t just medical – they also affect our economy. We spend almost $2 trillion annually on health care in the United States, 75 percent of which goes for treating and managing chronic diseases that are, in many cases, preventable. It is time to take preventative action and give consumers the tools they need to take better control of their diet and health.”

In New York City, prior to the implementation of its menu labeling policy, only 4 percent of restaurant customers saw nutrition information at restaurants that provided it (generally on websites, tray liners, posters, or brochures).  After menu labeling 90 percent of New Yorkers have read the nutrition information on menus in chain restaurants, and a remarkable 82 percent say menu labeling has affected what they order.

“Nutrition information on web sites, tray liners and other inconvenient places doesn’t work,” Wootan said. “If people are going to be able to use nutrition information, it has to be at the point of ordering, not on a poster back by the bathroom or after they’ve ordered the food.”

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Ingredients:

14 oz  canned Salmon
3 tsp   olive or canola oil
1 medium  onion, chopped
2/3 cup  cracker crumbs (rosemary garlic add flavor)
1   large egg, beaten
2   egg whites
1½ tbsp  parsley flakes
1 tsp   ground mustard
¼ cup   toasted pecan pieces (toast by heating in nonstick   frying pan over medium heat until lightly brown—about 2 minutes)

Directions:

1. Drain salmon, picking out any pieces of bones or skin, and flake what is left.  Add the flakes to a large mixing bowl.
2. Add 1 tsp oil to a small nonstick frying pan and heat over medium-heat.  Add onion and cook, turning often, until golden and tender.
3. Add onions to the salmon in the mixing bowl, along with half of the cracker crumbs (1/3 cup), beaten egg, egg whites, parsley, and mustard and beat on low speed to blend.  Add pecan pieces and briefly beat on low speed until mixed in.
4. Shape into six patties, about ½-inch thick.  Press both sides of each patty into the remaining cracker crumbs to lightly coat. 
5. Begin to heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add 2 teaspoons oil and spread evenly in the pan.  Cook the patties until nicely browned on both sides.

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PRESS RELEASE:      

WASHINGTON—At a news conference Monday morning, the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest will expose dangerously high levels of sodium in meals from Chili’s, Denny’s, Red Lobster, and other chains.

Who: Michael F. Jacobson, Ph.D., executive director, CSPI

Stephen Havas, M.D., adjunct professor of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Mel Daly, M.D., Medical Director of the Geriatrics Subacute Unit, Greater Baltimore Medical Center and Associate Professor of Medicine Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

What: CSPI will release a report, “Heart Attack Entrées with Side Orders of Stroke,” that exposes meals dangerously high in sodium from America’s chain restaurants.  Some of those meals will be on display at the news conference.  Physicians will explain the long-term risks of consuming too much salt, and how the levels in these meals put some people, particularly the elderly, at immediate risk of health problems.

When: 10:00 a.m. EDT on Monday, May 11, 2009

Where: Lisagor Room, National Press Club, 529 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC

Why: Consuming too much sodium increases one’s risk of developing hypertension, heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.  Most Americans should consume no more than 1,500 milligrams (mg) of sodium per day, but many of the meals CSPI will show provide more than 6,000 mg.  CSPI hopes to encourage restaurants to cut the salt and government to insist on major reductions in the sodium content of restaurant and packaged foods.

Staff – Everythingantiaging.com

Need a Refill on you Favorite Vitamin or Supplement?  We have the best price online.  Online: www.everythingantiaging.com or call toll free at 1-800-244-4116.

Ingredients:

1 dash of Salt

1 pound whole wheat penne or spiral pasta

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 tbsp butter

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated

3 tbsp flour

½ cup white wine

2 cups milk, 2% or whole works best

A few grates fresh nutmeg

1 box frozen chopped spinach (10 oz), defrosted and wrung dry in a kitchen towel

1 box frozen chopped artichokes (10 oz), defrosted and wrung dry in a kitchen towel

Ground black pepper

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, plus additional for sprinkling on top

1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus additional for sprinkling on top

1 cup shredded Gouda cheese

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place a large pot of water over high heat to cook the pasta.  When the water is boiling, salt it well and drop the pasta in.  Cook to al dente according to package directions.  Drain the pasta and reserve.
3. While the pasta is cooking, place a medium pot over medium-low heat with 2 turns of the pan of olive oil, about 2 tbsp, and the butter.  Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook the veggies until very soft, about 10 minutes.
4.  Turn the heat up to medium-high and sprinkle the flour into the pan.  Cook for about 1 minute then whisk the wine into the pan, cooking for another minute to burn off the alcohol.  Whisk the milk into the pan and bring up to a bubble.  Add the nutmeg, veggies, some salt and pepper to the sauce, and simmer until thickened, 2-3 minutes.  Add the cheeses to the sauce and stir until melted.
5.   Toss the prepared sauce with the cooked pasta and transfer to a casserole dish.  Sprinkle some more cheddar and Parmigiano over the top and bake until the cheese has melted and the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

 Serves 4.

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Julie Riggs, MED RD LD

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