Can you eat healthier fast food?

We have all heard fast food is bad for our health.  And mostly it is.  High in fat and high in calories.  But can you enjoy some fast food without it being a belly buster or clog our arteries?  Yes, you can enjoy fast food and eat fairly healthy if you make wiser choices. 

• Rule #1:  Skip the fried foods – I always tell my students, to avoid the fried foods.  So high in fat and calories.
• Rule #2 – Skip the sugary soda – opt for milk, juice or just a black cup of coffee.

MSN health and fitness featured a video on healthy fast food this week Can You Really Order Healthy From a Fast-Food Restaurant?   Foods to Choose:  

1.  McDonald’s  

• Grilled chicken sandwich – skip the mayo
• Apple slices or side salad
• Milk 

   2.  Subway

• Choose the whole grain bread – 9 Grain Wheat or 9 Grain Honey Oat
• Turkey Breast or Grilled Chicken – skip the mayo
• Vegetables – load up on vegetables, choose the healthier spinach, olives
• Chips – if you want chips choose baked or Sun Chips
• Milk
• Apple slices 

   3.  Kentucky Fried Chicken – KFC doesn’t like to be known as Kentucky Fried Chicken so now they are KFC

• Go for the Kentucky Grilled Chicken – still very tasty and you avoid the fried chicken, chicken breast would be the healthiest choice
• Sides – green beans, mashed potatoes (no gravy)
• Milk  or unsweetened tea 

     4.  Domino’s Pizza – pizza can be so high in fat, especially saturated fat.  But Domino’s has some new options.

• Veggie or Veggie and Chicken pizza - thin Crust pizza – ordering thin crust saves a lot of calories, their veggie, chicken pizza is only 140 calories a slice.   Have a couple of slices with a garden salad and you have a pretty health meal.

Most fast food restaurants post their nutrition information online.   Focus on lower fat options, especially try to reduce the saturated fat.  But I enjoy Fast Food, who doesn’t?  Last night we had Subway.  I chose the Roasted Chicken on 9 Grain bread, 6 inch, lots of veggies, chose Sun Chips and came home and added a glass of skim milk.   A pretty healthy meal.   You can eat healthier at Fast-Food restaurants, it just takes some planning and making healthier choices.

Sources:  Can You Really Order Healthy From a Fast-Food Restaurant?  Image Source:  KFC,
McDonald's