Could Nutritional Information In Restaurants Be Worthless?

Countless fast food chains have started posting the nutritional information for the items they sell in an effort to keep consumers aware of how many calories or fat is in their Biggie Fries or their Nachos Bell Grande.

But surprising (or perhaps not-so-surprising) findings from the purchasing habits of King County, Washington taco fans found the posted nutritional information had almost no effect on how many calories they bought and consumed.

As part of a comprehensive effort to curb the rise in obesity, King County, Washington, (which includes Seattle), imposed a mandatory menu labeling regulation on all restaurant chains with 15 or more locations beginning in January, 2009.

Restaurants had to disclose calorie information at the point of purchase.

Researchers from Duke-National University of Singapore (NUS) Graduate Medical School and the public health department of Seattle & King County found, in the 13 months after the legislation went into effect, food-purchasing behavior at the Taco Time locations in King County was identical to that in Taco Time locations where menu boards remained unchanged.

The total number of sales and average calories per transaction were unaffected by the menu labeling.

"Given the results of prior studies, we had expected the results to be small, but we were surprised that we could not detect even the slightest hint of changes in purchasing behavior as a result of the legislation," said lead author Eric Finkelstein, Ph.D., associate professor of health services at Duke-NUS.

Finkelstein said the results of the study suggest mandatory menu labeling may be unlikely to significantly influence the obesity epidemic, unless it‘s combined with other interventions.

As part of health care reform, the federal government has plans for a nationwide launch of mandatory nutrition information at the point of purchase for fast-food chains with 20 or more outlets.

"However, it may be that detailed nutritional information is not the best way to convey the health content of fast foods," said study co-author Kiersten Strombotne of Duke-NUS.

"For example, if you know a store offers diet and regular soda, does showing how many calories are in regular soda really offer any relevant information? Those who want a lower calorie drink already know to drink the diet soda."

Finkelstein said that the lack of effects at Taco Time may be because the restaurant was already identifying the healthier options via "Healthy Highlights" logos on the menu board before the legislation went into effect.

"A simple logo identifying which foods are healthiest may be all it takes to convey that information to those consumers who wish to choose a healthier alternative," Finkelstein said. "The additional information appears not to have made a difference."

Finkelstein pointed out the obesity epidemic continued to increase after the Nutrition Facts Panel was required nationally for pre-packaged foods. He suggested that further studies should be done to quantify which sources of information are most likely to encourage consumers to switch to healthier options.

However, Finkelstein points out such information would be too late for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to use because its regulations on fast-food menu labeling are due out by March 23, 2011.