Lean Cuisine is a division Stouffer's, which is owned by the Nestle Corporation. The Lean Cuisine line of frozen foods started in 1981. You can find the familiar boxes in the freezer aisle of the grocery store. When deciding whether to use frozen Lean Cusine meals as part of your diet, consider whether the meals meet your nutritional goals and objectives.
Features
Lean Cuisine frozen dinners are convenient, easy-to-prepare, have a long freezer life and are relatively inexpensive. As of 2011, Lean Cuisine offers more than 120 types of frozen dinners and snacks. The varieties range from familiar comfort foods to dinner entrees that feature larger portions. The meals are microwavable, and the Spa Cuisine line can also be cooked in a traditional oven. The line includes pizzas, ethnic meals, complete dinners and single entree choices.
Calories and Fat
The American Heart Association indicates that your maximum fat intake should be 30 percent of your calories, and that you should limit your saturated fat calories to 7 percent of your total calories. Lean Cuisine meals fall within these general fat recommendations, but some of the Lean Cuisine meals contain saturated fat, which can increase your risk of heart disease. As examples, the Fiesta Grilled and Pesto Chicken both contain 3 g of saturated fat, Macaroni and Cheese has 4 g, while the Glazed Chicken contains none. All the meals, snacks and entrees have less than 410 calories. If you eat 1,200 calories a day, a 400-calorie frozen meal makes up one-third of your dietary intake.
Sodium Content
The sodium content in frozen meals may stop you from using the meals as a regular part of your diet, if you follow the American Heart Association's recommendation of limiting sodium to 1,500 mg per day. Eating a frozen Lean Cuisine meal may give you between 19 and 60 percent of your total sodium intake for the day. Lean Cuisine meals have between 280 mg for the Roasted Vegetable Pizza Deep Dish to 890 mg for the Roasted Turkey Breast. Many of the entrees and dishes have sodium in the 400 to 600 mg per serving range.
Dietary Recommendations
Eating a Lean Cuisine meal occasionally can help you stay within your daily calorie allotment. Avoid relying on the Lean Cuisine meals every day, as learning to prepare your own healthy, low-calorie meals will help you control your salt and fat intake while learning new, long-term eating habits. When eating a frozen meal, add fresh vegetables, fruit and a low-fat dairy choice to nutritionally balance your meal. Do not add salt to the frozen meal, but instead add pepper or dried herbs.
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