| Tuesday, March 02, 2004 |
| Chains Offer Unhealthy Kid Food |
| Posted Feb 28, 2004
Children's
menus at some U.S. sit-down restaurant chains feature unhealthy foods, the
Center for Science in the Public Interest said Tuesday.
"Parents today can't make informed choices on feeding their children well. The
problem is that labeling in restaurants is non-existent," Margo Wootan, CSPI's
director of nutrition policy, said in Washington.
CSPI surveyed 20 of the United States' largest table-service restaurant chains
and contracted an independent laboratory to analyze the nutritional content of
kids' food at seven chains: Applebee's, Chili's, Cracker Barrel, Denny's, Olive
Garden, Outback Steakhouse and Red Lobster.
CSPI found the worse offender of kids' menu food was Outback Steakhouse, whose
kids' version of a cheeseburger, fries, soda, and sundae totaled 1,700 calories
and 58 grams of saturated fat.
The study's release coincided with Sen. Tom Harkin's, D-Iowa, introduction of
legislation Tuesday requiring nutritional information to be displayed on chain
restaurant menus and vending machines.
date: Feb 25, 2004 |
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