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Food Calorie Counts Will Start Appearing in US Restaurants and Grocery Stores (qz.com)
Americans are about to find it very difficult to avoid knowing how many calories they're consuming every day. From a report: That's because the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week decided to move forward with an Obama-era food labeling rule that requires restaurants, grocery, and convenience stores with 20 or more locations to post calorie counts for standard menu items. The interesting thing about calorie counts is that, while they undoubtedly offer more transparency around the foods we choose to eat, there's not a lot of evidence to show they affect people's purchasing decisions.
In 2017, a team of researchers led by a Harvard University professor conducted a systematic review of 53 studies on the topic. Their work was later published in the journal Obesity, and included an analysis of 18 studies of behavior in real-world restaurants, 9 from in cafeterias, and 21 from simulated settings. Five studies examined restaurant offerings. Overall, the review found that available research lacked strong designs, which ultimately makes understanding the effectiveness of calorie count labeling all the more cloudy.
In 2017, a team of researchers led by a Harvard University professor conducted a systematic review of 53 studies on the topic. Their work was later published in the journal Obesity, and included an analysis of 18 studies of behavior in real-world restaurants, 9 from in cafeterias, and 21 from simulated settings. Five studies examined restaurant offerings. Overall, the review found that available research lacked strong designs, which ultimately makes understanding the effectiveness of calorie count labeling all the more cloudy.
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Most chains with 20+ locations aren't worth going to anyway.
I also think it has a positive effect on many restaurants (even if relatively small) to try and reduce fat and sugar in their food
In Canada we've had this for a while now, and this seems to ring true, especially with serving size. I go to Broadway's regularly and get a club sandwich with fries. It used to come on a plate where they'd put as many fries as would fit, but a couple years ago they started limiting the fries to a more reasonable fixed portion. This is likely because their menus now indicate the calorie size of a serving of fries, and "as many calories as can fit on your plate" doesn't sound very good.