Dietary Quality of Fast-Food Menus Criticized

A study evaluating “five popular fast-food chains’ menus in relation to dietary guidance” has allegedly concluded that despite varied offerings, full menus “scored lower than 50 out of 100 possible points on the HEI-2005 [Healthy Eating Index- 2005].” Sharon Kilpatrick, et al., “Fast-food menu offerings vary in dietary quality, but are consistently poor,” Public Health Nutrition, January 2013. Researchers with Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, Arizona State University and the National Cancer Institute analyzed the total nutritional content of menus from Burger King, McDonald’s, Subway, Taco Bell, and Wendy’s using the HEI-2005 to calculate scores for all 12 index components for a total of 100 points. Nine of these components evidently “assess adequacy of amounts of food groups and oils in relation to MyPyramid recommendations, whereas the remaining three are referred to as moderation components because they measure constituents that should be limited in the diet (i.e. Saturated Fat, Sodium, Calories from Solid Fats and Added Sugars).”

According to the study, the HEI-2005 results revealed that fast-food menu scores “for Total Fruit, Whole Grains and Sodium were particularly dismal,” with no menu or subset of menu items receiving a score higher than 72 out of 100 points even though “kids’ menus scored 10 points higher on average” and items marketed as healthy or nutritious “scored 17 points higher on average” compared to the full menu. “The addition of fruits, vegetables, and legumes; replacement of refined with whole grains; and reformulation of offerings high in sodium, solid fats and added sugars are potential strategies to improve fast-food offerings,” argue the study’s authors. “The HEI may be a useful metric for ongoing monitoring of fast-food menus.”