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Fast-Food Salads
Some nights the drive-thru seems like the only option. The kids in the back seat are screaming, you're exhausted and you've still got three errands to run before you can call it a day. There's got to be something healthy on that fast-food menu. Wait, don't they have salads now? It's the perfect solution! Or is it?
What's In a Name?
Don't be fooled. Fast-food salads are often loaded with high-calorie ingredients like meat, cheese and high-fat dressing, making any good-for-you carrots or tomatoes they may contain irrelevant. "It's like recommending that people eat vegetables covered in lard," says Brie Turner-McGrievy, MS, RD, clinical research coordinator for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. In fact, if you include the dressing, one of McDonald's salads, the Fiesta salad contains more fat and calories than a Big Mac. (Including ranch dressing, the Fiesta salad clocks in with 620 calories and 57 grams of fat.) And the Big Mac is no lightweight with 580 calories and a whopping 33 grams of fat.
Are All Salads Created Equal?
Just because a few salads don't turn out to be health bargains doesn't mean that ordering one at a fast-food or chain restaurant has to be a nutritional nightmare. McDonald's California Cobb salad without chicken comes in at a respectable 190 calories and 12 grams of fat when eaten with the low-fat balsamic dressing. Turner McGrievy recommends looking for salads that are heavy in veggies, high-fibre beans and even a few nuts (for protein and healthy fats). If there's nothing like that on the menu, see if you can get a salad "your way." Perhaps they can leave off the cheese, fried noodles, croutons or bacon, substitute a low-fat or nonfat dressing for regular or give you grilled, rather than crispy (read: fried), chicken.
But if that's not an option, don't despair. Turner-McGrievy points out that many fast-food restaurants do offer more health-conscious non-salad items like vegetable burgers and bean-based meals.
The Low Down
Still craving one of those high-fat, high-calorie salads? Go for it. Just make sure it's only an occasional treat and balanced by healthier eating the rest of the day. Our Community users have some great tips, too:
- At restaurants that serve soup, see if you can get a low-calorie soup with just half a salad.
- Don't forget that the nutrition information provided is usually for just the salad and NOT the dressing, too.
- Ask for salsa instead of their high-fat dressings.
- The dressings may be high in calories but use just half the pack — you'll find it's more than enough.
- Leave off the croutons and cheese. Otherwise, you may as well have a burger and fries!
Subscriber Highlight: Heading out for fast food? Check out the options in our Restaurants section.
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