Counting calories

The current debate, chez moi and LOML, is whether or not chain restaurants should be forced to tell us the calorie count of each item on their menu. “To what end?” I ask. He sez it would help diners make wiser choices. I say, “Like graphic warnings on a pack of smokes stops a smoker from firing up?” He sez he might think twice about ordering a side of fries followed by a piece of pie with ice cream, given a little warning on the menu. I say if you want dessert, order dessert, and if fries are on your radar, don’t forget to ask for extra gravy.

Most of us have been to the fast food places with the wall of caloric warnings. In my day, I have been a dining guest in more than one of “those” chain restaurants and not once have I seen anyone look at the chart on the wall, other than in passing it on the way to the restroom. Who goes to a TGI Fridays or a McDonalds or a Kelsey’s, a Montana’s or Denny’s to get a healthy meal? Oh sure, there are healthy choices on menus at those places. Who freaking does that? If you catch my sorry-arse inside any one of those places, it’s for a guilty pleasure trip, extra cheese and bacon, SVP. No, wait. The provincial government is motivated to curb childhood obesity. Come on. I wanna meet the parent who takes a kid or two to a fast food joint then tries to push the clean eating button, while perusing the menu and stalking the great big chart of calories. If you’ve taken your kid into one of those places, the meal isn’t going to make any paediatrician happy. You’d better bet a kid doesn’t want the apple slices (with the caramel dipping sauce), the low fat milk and a cheeseless burger, even if you’ve promised them a quality workout in the “play room” after they eat at least one apple slice. No matter how you dice it, the kid is gonna snitch a load of fries off your plate and you’re gonna cave when they ask for a box of donut holes on the way home.

I think the provincial government needs to stop casting aspersions on the restaurants, and start looking at parents to do the job of taking care of their own children. The political finger is being waved at the wrong group of people. Ain’t nobody holding a hot-buttered, cinnamon gun to a parent’s head when there’s whining and dining about to go down. It is not now, and never has been, the restaurant industry’s fault for today’s chubby children, or roly-poly parents, for that matter. Does the provincial government have a plan afoot to make automobile manufacturers put a warning on newly purchased vehicles, “Will need to be refuelled after X-number of kilometres”. Or to force grocery stores to post a warning sign in the produce department, “Fruit and vegetables contain roughage. Extra bathroom tissue may be needed to handle the outcome. Govern your intake accordingly.” I don’t think so. And, what about the wonder of the cereal aisle. General Mills, Nabisco, Kellogg and Post aren’t slouching in the bad-for-you department, trying to pass off Froot Loops as a good breakfast choice by putting a check mark on the top of the box to let you know there’s “fibre” (most likely in the cardboard of the box). Not too much is usually said about the inordinate amount of sugar—sometimes as much as 45 per cent by weight. The calorie count is listed on the box and a suggestion is made that the cereal is part of a healthy start to the day.

Nope. Nope. Nope. If the province wants me to sit up and take notice of its take on dealing with childhood obesity, I suggest it take my advice about giving good instructions. Every parent/caregiver should be handed the most up-to-date set of instructions, as regards caring for and feeding. It’s not enough to have a nurse drop by the new mom’s bed in the maternity ward to ask if the newborn is going to be “bottle or breast”. That is only the beginning of the lifelong nutritional odyssey. Parents make the choices for their children, they need guidelines at their fingertips at all times, not just when they go for a treat at a local chain restaurant. Restaurants are in the business of feeding customers what customers crave, they vie for customers with their offerings.

And, honestly, it isn’t just about calories is it? Politicians are looking to score points with voters who don’t want to take responsibility for the welfare of their children. Seriously, there is a difference between 700 calories from a crappy breakfast loaded with sugar, saturated fat and chemicals, and 700 calories from a good breakfast of whole grains, fresh fruit and dairy. Parents know it. Politicians know it. Restaurants know it. Food producers know it. If you’re going to fill those tanks, get the fuel right.

theresa@wellingtontimes.ca