Friday, November 12, 2010

Have it your way - healthful, even

Double Quarter Pounder With Cheese

McDonald's employs a director of nutrition? Who knew? Dr. Cindy Goody has been with McDonald’s since 2008. She was recently interviewed for Nation's Restaurant News, and had some interesting things to say:
Nutrition is the science of how our bodies use food to contribute to health, and as a registered dietitian, I have an opportunity to translate that science so consumers can use it to improve their health and well-being. As McDonald’s director of nutrition I have the opportunity to share this knowledge with the more than 26 million customers that visit our 14,000 U.S. restaurants every day.
Her philosophy is that there are no good or bad foods, but anyone can consume a bad balance of foods. Since McDonald's offered varied menu choices, she says people can build a nutritious meal from the items offered and by monitoring their portion size.
McDonald’s has provided nutrition about our quality food for more than 35 years. Today, there are eight ways customers can easily access McDonald's nutrition information: on McDonalds.com, via our toll-free telephone number (1-800-244-6227), on select product packaging, on the backs of trayliners, in-restaurant nutrition brochures, via voice-activated information through our toll-free number, via mobile devices and now on HealthyDiningFinder.com.
As an improvement to Happy Meals, Goody says McDonald’s sells more than 72 million Apple Dippers annually and more than 180 million Milk Jugs per year.
And guess what? McDonald's will even be adding oatmeal to its breakfast offerings next year.
We'll see if that gets the same real estate on their menu board that the Double Quarter Pounder With Cheese (740 calories) with large fries (500 calories) and soft drink (310 calories). 
(By the way, those aren't the most calorie-dense offerings: that would be the Angus Bacon Cheese with 790 calories, 2070 mg sodium, and the large triple thick chocolate shake at 1160 calories.)
If you want to check out the nutritional stats of your favorite Mickey D's food, you can view the pdf here.

To read the entire interview with Goody: http://www.nrn.com/article/qa-dr-cindy-goody-mcdonald’s-usa-director-nutrition?ad=healthydining&utm_source=MagnetMail&utm_medium=email&utm_term=richardsons15@yahoo.com&utm_content=NRN-News-NRNam-11-12-10&utm_campaign=Red%20Lobster%20looking%20to%20lower%20price%20points#ixzz154azWBnz