The frequency of children eating fast food meals might be contributing to the rising levels of childhood obesity, suggests a study published in the November 2008 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition." Before the availability of fast food restaurants exploded, most children ate at school or at home, but according to the study, one-quarter of 4- to 8-year-old children eat fast food every day.
Federal Standards
Sharon O'Donnell, lead author of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" study, found that fast food kids' meals at restaurants only met federal standards for healthy meals 3 percent of the time. The meals that met the criteria outlined by the National School Lunch Program were the kids' meals that contained fruit, milk and deli-type sandwiches rather than kids' meals with fried chicken nuggets or hamburgers.
Hamburger-Based Kids' Meals
Hamburger kids' meals usually contain a hamburger on a bun, small french fries and a drink of the child's choice. A small hamburger meal with small fries and a cup of 1 percent milk contains about 590 calories, 810 mg of sodium, 23 g of fat and 450 mg of calcium. If your child chooses apples with caramel dip instead of fries, he will eat 450 calories, just 12 g of fat and 570 g of sodium. A small kid-size hamburger by itself has 260 calories and 490 mg of sodium.
Chicken-Based Kids' Meals
While you might assume that giving your children meals with chicken instead of beef will add less fat and calories to their daily intake, the truth is that a kids' meal with chicken nuggets, french fries and a cup of 1 percent milk has 520 calories, 26 g of fat and 650 mg of sodium. Replacing the fries with apples reduces the calories of the meal by 130. If your child drinks soda or apple juice rather than milk, the calories remain similar, but the sugar content of the meal increases.
Deli-Sandwich Kids' Meals
A turkey deli sandwich meal contains 325 calories. The breakdown of calories includes 180 calories from the sandwich, 110 calories from 1 percent milk and 35 calories for a bag of apple slices. The meal has 730 mg of sodium, 5 g of fat and 20 g of protein. A roast beef sandwich meal contains about 10 more calories than the turkey meal. If you add chips to your child's meal rather than apples, he will eat about 100 additional calories.
Considerations
Help your child learn to make healthy choices at fast food restaurants by sharing the nutritional information with him, asking him to eat fruit instead of chips or fries and ordering him water or milk rather than soda. Setting a good example by ordering healthier choices yourself might make him more likely to follow your lead. Limit the number of times you eat fast food together, and plan ahead by packing a lunch or dinner when you will be away from the house.
References
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; "Nutrient Quality of Fast Food Kids Meals"; Sharon O'Donnell et al.; November 2008
- McDonald's; "Nutrition Information for McDonald's Happy Meals"; August 2011
- Burger King: Menu and Nutrition
- Subway: Kids -- Turkey Breast
- LIVESTRONG MyPlate; "Apple Slices (Subway)"; May 2008
- UDSA Nutrient Data Laboratory: Milk, 1 Percent
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