Watch Those Calories!

Read ’em before you eat ’em, the Health Department advises in a new campaign launched recently to help New Yorkers make the most of the city’s calorie-posting rules. Under the NYC Health Code, chain restaurants are required to post calorie counts for food items on menus and menu boards. The rule took effect this summer, after a federal court upheld it and an appellate court refused to delay enforcement while the industry tries again to overturn it. The new campaign—five ads appearing in 1,000 NYC subway cars for the next two months—is designed to help New Yorkers see how quickly fast-food calories add up. Many are unaware that a typical adult needs only 2,000 calories a day to maintain a steady weight. Even fewer know how easy it is to overshoot that goal while eating on the go.

The campaign shows how deceptive appearances can be. One poster shows an apple raisin muffin that looks harmless but carries a stout 470 calories—nearly a quarter of an adult’s daily allowance. If you’re eating it as a snack, you may want to split it with a friend.

Now that this information is available in chain restaurants, it’s easy to make healthier choices. Once you set a daily calorie budget, there are lots of ways to live within it.”

As the new ads make clear, you don’t have to give up all indulgences to eat fewer calories. By ordering a diet soda and a small order of fries you can cut the caloric impact by half.

Health Department surveys have shown that when restaurant patrons use calorie information in deciding what to order, they average nearly 100 fewer calories in each meal purchased. The Health Department estimates that posting calories on menus will reduce the number of people who suffer from obesity by 150,000 over the next five years, preventing more than 30,000 cases of diabetes.

To learn more about a healthy diet, physical activity or how to lose weight, please visit nyc.gov/health.