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Fast Food Nutrition: The Facts Are All There

Sponsored Content - By Lanette Kovachi, MS, RD

Eating well while on the go doesn't have to be hard. These days, virtually every major quick service restaurant gives full nutrition information on their websites and/or on nutrition brochures located in the store.

If you take a little time to review the nutrition information, you will find that most fast food restaurants offer a few choices that have lower amounts of calories, fat and saturated fat. Typically, these choices include sandwiches or salads with grilled chicken with light dressings and sauces. On the flipside, you will also find many more choices that are off the charts in calories, fat and saturated fat. Eating these on a regular basis can be unhealthy. Educating yourself about the food you eat is the first step in eating right, – without knowledge you can't make informed choices. Even if you opt not to make the most ideal nutritional choice when eating out, you can compromise and not make the "worst" choice. It is also useful to compare nutrition information from different restaurants and pick the one that offers you the choices you want.

Eating well at a SUBWAY® restaurant is easy. For example, when you take a look at SUBWAY® nutrition facts, you will find that there are 8 sandwiches that have less than 400 calories and are low in total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and trans fat free (almost half of the sandwiches on the menu). These sandwiches are listed on the menu, cups, napkins and sandwich counter as "fresh fit"/ "6 g of fat or less" choices. Compared to competitors, SUBWAY® offers a much larger variety of better-for-you sandwich options. Having this variety makes it very easy to make a better food choice. You will also find that if you add cheese and light mayo to these sandwiches, the calories and fat level do go up, however they're still lower than the majority of other fast food sandwiches and entrees. SUBWAY® restaurants also offer several nutritious sides – yogurt, apples and raisins, and as well as baked chips - so you can make a complete meal with reasonable calories and saturated fat.

Of course at Subway® restaurants, there are a handful of "indulgent" sandwich choices (for example a fresh toasted Chicken & Bacon Ranch Melt or Italian B.M.T.® sub) and sides (those delicious fresh-baked cookies). If you are watching your calories and fat intake, it is a good idea to become familiar with the nutritional content of these items as well. That way if you choose to indulge, you will know to balance it out with better choices at other meals.

Knowing the nutritional content of the fast food you are eating doesn't have to be a mystery. Nutritional data for SUBWAY® menu offerings and all major fast food restaurants is easily available to help you make better.

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