Childhood Obesity - Do you have an overweight child? We offer tips to help your child lose weight and get fit!

The My Overweight Child blog will help you keep informed about the latest research, findings, and resources available to parents of overweight or obese kids. There are many knowledgeable people working on the increasingly dire problem of childhood obesity - and we want to give parents a place where they can check in regularly to see the latest studies and tips available to help you help your child lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

We invite you to add your comments - if you have feedback for the blog, would like some specific topics covered, or you just want to share your experience as a parent dealing with childhood obesity.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Calories on Menus May Encourage People to Eat Less

Posting calorie counts on restaurant menus may motivate people to eat less , according to a new study from the Rudd Center for Food Policy at Yale University.
  • Researchers divided 300 people into three groups.
  • Group 1 had menus with the calories listed for the entrees only.
  • Group 2 had calories listed for entrees, as well as the notice that the recommended calorie intake for the average adult is 2000 calories a day.
  • Group 3 used menus that had no calorie references on them.
  • The group that had the 2000 calorie reference and the calorie labels ate about 250 calories less at dinner than the other groups. (That group ate 1380 calories at dinner as opposed to 1630 for the other groups.)
Author Christina Roberto said that calorie savings like this would add up over time and could favorably affect people's weights.

The study appeared in the American Journal of Public Health.

Labels: calories, menus

Posted By: Aspen/CRC 0 Comments

Monday, June 21, 2010

Calorie Counts on Menus Not Reducing Size of Meals

 

The health care reform bill that was passed in March included a provision requiring restaurants to list calorie counts in their menus. Despite this, the Center for Science in the Public Interest found that few restaurants have scaled back the size or content of their meals.

A pancake breakfast providing 1,380 calories, a single-serving pizza that packs two days’ worth of sodium and a pasta dish swimming in four day’s worth of fat top a list published by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). …

The U.S. Institute of Medicine says the average American needs about 2,000 calories a day, 1,500 mg of salt and no more than 20 grams of saturated fat. Most get far more than this. [Source: Reuters]

The food and restaurant industry insists that American consumers, not eating establishments, need to regulate food. The industry has long argued that Americans need to exert self-control when eating out, regardless of the food offered on in restaurants. Few agree with this premise, believing some form of government regulation needs to be enacted.

 

Labels: nutrition, menus

Posted By: Stefanie Hamilton 1 Comment