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Report: Fast-food chains inconsistent on pledges to promote healthy food options
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McDonald’s, Wendy’s and several other similar establishments are not consistently following through on their pledges to promote more nutritious food options, according to a recent report.
“Frequent fast food consumption negatively affects children’s diets, weight and health. One-third of children consume fast food on a given day, contributing 126 additional calories, increased sugar, saturated fat, sodium and sugary drink intake, and reduced milk intake on those days. Furthermore, a majority of kids’ meal main dishes offered by top fast-food restaurants exceed dietary recommendations for the percent of calories from fat, saturated fat and sodium,” Jennifer Harris, PhD, MBA, of the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, and colleagues wrote in the report.
“Policies that reduce calories and improve the nutritional quality of foods and beverages consumed by children at fast-food restaurants will likely improve children’s health, with even greater benefits for lower-income, black, and Hispanic populations.”
Researchers employed mystery shoppers to determine if the fast-food restaurants Subway, Dairy Queen, Wendy’s, Burger King, KFC and McDonald’s were fulfilling their pledges to administer healthier kids’ policies. Data were collected in 2010, 2013, and 2016 to show trends over time.
Their queries focused on whether these establishments adhered to the pledges on an ongoing basis and the process behind these restaurants’ promoting the healthier food items and not elevating the unhealthy choices.
Among the findings that Harris and researchers reported:
•Between 2010 and 2016, the segment of kids’ meal orders that were offered healthier drinks increased at McDonald’s and Burger King, and stayed consistently high at Subway. There was no improvement at Wendy’s;
•All kids’ meal drink options listed on the websites of establishments in the study were healthier choices — including plain water, 100% fruit juice and low-fat milk, — which researchers called a significant improvement from 2013 to 2016;
•In 2016, employees automatically supplied unhealthy sides with the majority of kids’ meal orders at McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s;
•Although available on the menu, personnel did not suggest healthier kids’ meal side options with most orders at Burger King, Wendy’s, or Dairy Queen;
•In 2016, employees suggested healthier drink choices with most kids’ meal orders at the point-of-sale. However, some personnel at all the restaurants continued to involuntarily offer unhealthy drinks as the default;
•Only McDonald’s and Subway pledged to offer healthier sides with kids’ meals. However, all establishments studied offered at least one healthier kids’ meal side, though all restaurants (including McDonald’s and Subway) also continued to list unhealthy kids’ meal side options on menu boards inside restaurants; and
•In 2016, the majority of menu boards at the establishments visited indicated healthier kids' meal drinks, but about one-third or more of restaurant menu boards also listed unhealthy drinks for kids' meals.
“Fast food restaurants have not consistently implemented their healthier kids’ meal pledges,” Harris and colleagues wrote. “Policy makers should consider legislation or regulation to require that all restaurants offer healthier kids’ meals.” – by Janel Miller
Reference: Harris J, et al. Are fast-food restaurants keeping their promises to offer healthier kids' meals? Available at: http://www.uconnruddcenter.org/healthierkidsmeals Accessed Aug. 30, 2017.
Disclosure: Healio Family Medicine was unable to determine researchers’ relevant disclosures prior to publication.
Perspective
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Caroline M, Apovian, MD
If you have accepted the fact that obesity is a disease caused by a genetic interaction between the human body and the environment that results in a dysfunction of the central regulation of energy balance, then this report showing that the default item provided to our children in fast-food restaurants is unhealthy is akin to children being offered alcohol in a restaurant. This has now been shown to be as unacceptable.
In addition, the latest work of Frank Hu and colleagues shows that there is indeed enough evidence to show that decreasing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption will reduce the prevalence of obesity and obesity-related conditions, most notably type 2 diabetes. These beverages are not something that should be offered to children or adolescents. Studies show that overconsumption of calories leads to damage in the area of the brain crucial for maintaining the body weight set point. Once this is damaged it seems to lead to a defense of a higher body weight set point. The implications for our environment interacting with our children in terms of overconsumption of foods that are highly processed and loaded with sugar calories is devastating to our children’s future.
Obviously, this report’s results show that this pledge of removing sugar-sweetened beverages from menu boards by the fast-food industry, as well as offering healthier drinks and side dishes, was meant to appease certain factions striving for prevention, rather than to take a stand and act in the interest of the future health of the United States.
I agree that policy makers need to at this point enact legislation that would require that the fast-food industry offer only healthy drinks to children. This is what happened with alcohol regulation in the early part of the 20th century. We now all agree that alcohol should not be sold or served to minors because it is harmful to their health. Aren’t sugar-sweetened beverages harmful to children’s health?
References:
Hu FB. Obes Rev. 2013;doi:10.1111/obr.12040.
Thaler JP, et al. Diabetes. 2013; doi:10.2337/db12-1605.
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