Dr. Robyn J.A. Silverman

You probably knew it wasn’t the healthiest option on the block. But
when you go into a fast-food restaurant (can we really call them
that?), you’re getting a lot more than you bargained for when you order
a kid’s meal for little Johnny and Josephine. Way more.

Only one or 2 restaurants coming to mind as the culprits? You’d be surprised…or perhaps the word is…disgusted. In fact, a recent study
by the Center for Science and Public Interest suggests that 90% of
children’s “kid’s meals” at 13 major fast-food and restaurant chains
are too high—way too high—in calories for our little tykes.

Here’s the scoop:

Who did the study? Center for Science and Public Interest (CSPI), a non-profit organization.

What were they looking for? The report aimed to investigate the nutritional quality in 13 major restaurant chains.

What did they find?

• 90% of 13 restaurant chains were too high in calories for our children. The
  recommended number of calories per meal for children between the ages
  of 4 and 8 (the majority of kid’s meal eaters) is 430.
• Half of the children’s meals exceeded the National Institute of Medicine’s recommendations for saturated and trans fat. These fats can raise cholesterol levels in the children (an issue that’s been given a lot of attention lately) and increase heart disease.
• 86% of kid’s meals are too high in sodium. Again, this is startling because, according to CSPI and recent studies, a
  quarter of children between the ages of 5 and 10 show early signs of
  heart disease, such as high LDL (the “bad” cholesterol) or elevated
  blood pressure.
• Eating out now accounts
  for 1/3 of children’s DAILY caloric intake—twice the amount consumed
  away from home only 30 years ago.

In a nut shell… Many kids’ meal combos are too high in calories, fat, and sodium:
CSPI found that nearly every possible combination of children’s meals
at popular stops such as Chick-fil-A, Sonic, Taco Bell, Jack in the
Box, and KFC are too high in calories. Most of the kids’meals
(93 percent) at McDonald’s and Wendy’s are too high in calories, as are
the possibilities at Burger King (92 percent), Dairy Queen (89
percent), Arby’s (69 percent), and Denny’s (60 percent—though its kids’
meals don’t include drinks).

Give me some examples, Dr. Robyn:

• Chili’s Bar and Grill: This popular chain has 700 possible combinations of kids’ meals. Out of those 700, 658 (94%) are too high in calories for the children they aim to serve. One
  such meal combo, consisting of “country fried chicken crispers,”
  cinnamon apples and chocolate milk might look harmless but packs a
  whopping 1020 calories (nearly 2 ½ times the number of calories a child
  should eat at any one meal)! Another Chili’s combo, made
  up of cheese pizza, homestyle fries, and lemonade contained 1,000
  calories (over 2 times the recommended amount).
• Burger King: The
  “Big Kid’s Meal” (How big? An adult?), comprised of a double
  cheeseburger, fries, and chocolate milk came out to 910 calories. (Since
  CSPI’s study was completed, Burger King has introduced a
  calorie-friendly kid’s meal with macaroni and cheese, apple “fries,”
  and 1 percent milk at 420 calories).
• Sonic: This
  chain’s “Wacky Pack” make up of a grilled cheese sandwich, fries, and a
  slushie (definitely NOT nutritious) packed almost double the
  recommended number of calories at 830.

Christi Woodworth, a spokeswoman for Sonic, said the
chain is looking into adding a variety of healthy side items, and plans
to introduce string cheese at 90 calories each in September.

Did anyone come out fairing well? Subway came out on top for it’s kid’s meal combinations. Only 1/3 of their 18 “Fresh Fit for Kids” Meals exceeded the 430 calorie recommendation. These
meals consist of a mini-sub, juice box, and one side item like apple
slices, raisins, or yogurt, much healthier options than “would you like
fries with that?”

The Blame Game:

• The restaurants say…"exercising
  parental responsibility is key to childhood nutrition." [The report]
  "fails to acknowledge the essential role of nutrition education,
  physical activity and parental responsibility in childhood nutrition —
  good eating habits and healthy living must be established in the home."
  -- The National Restaurant Association, a business group of about 945,000 restaurants and food outlets. They
  voiced that the said trend in the industry is to provide "more detailed
  nutritional information and choice in menu options for consumers."

• Center for Science and Public Interest says: "Parents
  want to feed their children healthy meals, but America's chain
  restaurants are setting parents up to fail. McDonald's, Burger King,
  KFC, and other chains are conditioning kids to expect burgers, fried
  chicken, pizza, French fries, macaroni and cheese, and soda in various
  combination at almost every lunch and dinner. -- CSPI nutrition policy director, Margo G. Wootan, said in a statement.

• KFC says…
  [we’re] "proud to offer a variety of kids meals for those looking for
  lower calorie, lower fat options." The statement noted that the
  report's calculations include baked Cheetos and a biscuit, sides that
  are no longer offered.

• Jack in the Box says…that
  parents do indeed have several healthy options that can select for
  their children including applesauce and reduced fat milk.

Interesting Fun (Frustrating?) Fact: You may have noticed that six leading restaurant chains — Applebee's, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, TGIFriday's, Outback Steakhouse, and IHOP (International House of Pancakes) — weren't included in the report. Why not? They don’t disclose nutritional information about their meals, kid’s or otherwise, even when asked, according to CSPI.

CSPI recommends that restaurants…

(1) Revise their menus: How
about including options that are lower in calories, trans fat, and
salt? CSPI asks that they add more healthy items like fruit, veggies,
and whole grains.

(2) Shake up the default:
Instead of fries being the “default” items for side dishes, make fruit,
veggies take their place. Instead of making “soda” the default drink,
replacing it with water and low-fat milk.

(3) Nutrition info front and center: Provide nutrition information on menus and menu boards like New York and San Francisco have already done.

Since many of these restaurants are in no rush to reorganize their menu’s for children;

(1) Parents need to take initiative and use discretion when they enter these establishments in order to choose the best lunch or dinner options .

(2) Drop the soda and highly sweetened juice and opt for water, low fat milk, or bring along something you trust and know is healthy.

(3) Do a little research: While I agree, it should already be done for us, in many cases, it’s not. Many of these foods might look harmless but are packed with calories, sugar, fat, and sodium.

(4) Ask for details: If they don’t have the nutritional information out, ask for it. You have a right to know what your child is putting in his or her mouth.

(5) Make your wishes known: Let your local restaurants know what you want. With enough people asking, they’ll be more likely to provide it.

There's no doubt. It’s certainly frustrating for people to call this stuff “kid’s meals” when they are fit for children. So many fast food and convenient items are just as they say they are—fast and convenient but not often healthy. For the health of our children, if they’re not going to make the change, we have to do it for them.

What are your thoughts on the issue? We’d love to hear from you.