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Meals Offer Big Calories For Small Frys

Tribune photo by JASON BEHNKEN

Fast-food outlets are attempting to offer more healthy alternatives, such as apple slices and yogurt.

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By MARY SHEDDEN

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 16, 2008

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If you grab a fast-food meal for your kids tonight, you may be dumping a grownup portion of calories into their pint-sized bodies.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest found a whopping 93 percent of the kids meals offered by 13 top chains - including Chick-Fil-A and McDonald's - contain too many calories.

Several meals hover around the 1,000-calorie mark, far above the roughly 430-calorie-a-meal recommendation from the Institutes of Medicine for sedentary children who are 4 to 8 years old. The one major exception is Subway.

Calorie-laden soft drinks and fried foods, such as chicken nuggets and French fries, continue to dominate menus, despite a recent trend toward adding more healthful selections. Apple slices, raisins, yogurt, water and 2 percent milk are available substitutions that can reduce calories and boost nutritional value.

"With a few swaps and switches, people really can make healthier choices at these fast-food joints, especially when the decisions are made before going in, says Dawn Jackson Blatner, an American Dietetic Association spokeswoman.

CSPI set its optimal calorie count at 430 because it is one-third of the recommended average daily calories for sedentary children. An active child in that range would need about 565 calories per meal, according to the IOM, a component of the National Academies of Science.

The study also found that 45 percent of the kids meals are high in saturated fat and trans fat, and 86 percent are high in sodium.

Chick-fil-A

20: number of kid meal combinations

20: meals in excess of 430 calories (100 percent)

For best nutrition, try: grilled chicken instead of fried; fruit cup or side salad instead of fries; replace soda with low-fat milk

McDonald's

40: number of kid meal combinations

37: meals in excess of 430 calories (93 percent)

For best nutrition, try: hamburger without cheese; apple dippers instead of fries; replace soda with low-fat milk

Burger King

49: number of kid meal combinations

45: meals in excess of 430 calories (92 percent)

For best nutrition, try: BK Fresh Apple Fries; low-fat milk instead of soda; and substitute burgers with macaroni and cheese (note: high in sodium)

Subway

18: number of kid meal combinations

6: meals in excess of 430 calories (33 percent)

For best nutrition, try: sandwiches without mayonnaise; yogurt or apples instead of baked chips.

Source: 2008 Center for Science in the Public Interest report analyzing kids meals at 19 of the nation's 25 major restaurant chains. Information from the Chicago Tribune was used in this report.

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