Although I always recommend my patients pack lunch the night before, fast-food options are plentiful in downtown Toronto and dining out is a common social event. If you find yourself drowning in the plethora of fast-food options at your local food court, here is a quick guide to making healthy decisions on the fly.
- Salad- You’re at a fast food joint and you pick the salad because you think it’s healthier than the burger, but this is not always the case. Crumbled bacon bits, sugar coated candied nuts, excessive cheese, tortilla strips, fried chicken, fatty croutons and creamy dressings full of trans-fat and questionable preservatives can mean the salad ends up being a worse option than a plain single serving hamburger. Prime example, Wendy’s Baja Salad with Jalapeño dressing= 720 calories, 17g saturated fat, Wendy’s ¼lb. single with cheese and condiments= 590 calories, 14g. saturated fat.
– Look for salad that have spinach, arugula or mixed greens as a base instead of iceberg or romaine, these greens offer a lot more nutrients
– If the salad has bacon, croutons or tortilla strips, ask for extra veggies on top instead
– Chose grilled chicken, lean steak strips, egg, tofu cubes or grilled shrimp over fried chicken as a protein
– Instead of candied nuts, ask for plain toasted nuts instead
– Ask the server for dressing on the side (so you can control the amount you put on) and vinaigrettes are generally better options than creamy dressings
- Sushi– When the sushi craze began, simple offering such as California rolls, salmon rolls and vegetable rolls were all great options for a healthy and light meal. And then, we decided to “westernize” and in my opinion, mass destruct this Japanese delicacy. Tempura this, Tempura bits that, huge globs of spicy sauce (aka mayo and chili paste), cream cheese and other unnecessary ingredients has made this item a calorie laden bombshell. Here are some betters options to stick with
-Avoid anything tempura, or anything labelled ‘crispy’
-If you simply can’t give up that spicy sauce, ask for it on the side so that you can control how much you are putting on your rolls
– Don’t order rolls with cream cheese, I’ve been to Japan and cream cheese does not exist there
– The best choices include: California rolls, rainbow rolls, plain fish rolls (salmon, tuna hamachi etc), sashimi, futomaki, vegetable rolls (not the tempura kind), and bbq eel rolls
-Ask for brown rice rolls if possible
- Fruit Smoothies- It seems like every fast-food joint these days is offering up their version of a fruit smoothie. In reality, most are them are no better than a corner store slushy, full of processed empty sugar calories and very little nutrients. Because they use pureed juice/ fruit juice and not real fruit like they claim, these restaurants have stripped away anything good that was in the fruit.
-A medium fruit smoothie at Tim Horton’s has 43g of sugar, 0g of fibre and 0% daily intake vitamin C. (For comparison, a double chocolate donut has only 16g of sugar)
-Instead, try packing an actual piece of fruit in the car and buy an unsweetened iced coffee or tea as a refreshing cool treat on those hot summer days
-If you must have your smoothie fix, I recommend the Vivanno smoothies at Starbucks; each contains a whole banana and lots of protein (~17g) and fiber (~6g) to keep you feeling full. Ask for nonfat milk for a lower calorie count or soy milk/coconut milk if dairy free
- Sandwiches– Below is a guide on building a better sandwich
–Whole grains: Ask to make sure the bread it “100% whole grain” not just “whole wheat.” Good choices should have at least 3 grams of fiber per serving.
-Lean protein: Good options include: fresh chicken, turkey, ham, lean roast beef, tuna made with light mayo and hummus.. Tip: If making sandwiches at home, check the sodium in packaged deli meats. Reduce sodium but cooking meats at home and slicing the leftovers for sandwiches
– Vegetables: Veggies add both nutrients and flavor. Tomatoes, fresh greens (the darker, the better), red onion, cucumbers, avocado and peppers are all good choices.
– Condiments: -ask for lower-fat and calories choices such as: mustard, honey or dijon mustard, barbeque sauce, hot sauce or hummus
– Cheese- Always go for the less processed options to reduce sodium. For example, choosing sliced Swiss cheese over processed American cuts about 360mg of sodium
