and Education Act, which exempted restaurants. The new restaurant
menus would list calories, fat, and sodium on printed menus, and calo-
ries on menu boards, for all items that are offered on a regular basis
(daily specials don’t apply). But isn’t this simply asking restaurants to
state the obvious? Who isn’t aware that an order of supersize fries isn’t
health food? Does anyone order a double cheeseburger thinking
they’re being virtuous?
Studies have shown that it’s not that simple. In one, registered dieti-
cians couldn’t come up with accurate estimates of the calories found in
certain fast foods. Who would have guessed that a milk shake, which
sounds pretty healthy (it does contain milk, after all) has more calories
than three McDonald’s cheeseburgers? Or that one chain’s chicken
breast sandwich, another better-sounding alternative to a burger, con-
tains more than half a day’s calories and twice the recommended daily
amount of sodium? Even a fast-food coffee drink, without a doughnut
to go with it, has almost half the calories needed in a day.
The restaurant industry isn’t happy about the new bill. Arguments
against it include the fact that diet alone is not the reason for America’s
obesity epidemic. A lack of adequate exercise is also to blame. In addi-
tion, many fast food chains already post nutritional information on
their websites, or on posters located in their restaurants.
Those who favor the MEAL Act, and similar legislation, say in
response that we must do all we can to help people maintain a healthy
weight. While the importance of exercise is undeniable, the quantity
and quality of what we eat must be changed. They believe that if we
want consumers to make better choices when they eat out, nutritional
information must be provided where they are selecting their food.
Restaurant patrons are not likely to have memorized the calorie counts
they may have looked up on the Internet, nor are they going to leave
their tables, or a line, to check out a poster that might be on the oppo-
site side of the restaurant.- The purpose of the passage is to
a. targue the restaurant industry’s side of the debate.
b.explain why dieticians have trouble estimating the nutritional
content of fast food.
c. help consumers make better choices when dining out.
d.explain one way legislators propose to deal with the obesity epi-
demic.
e.argue for the right of consumers to understand what they are
ordering in fast food restaurants.
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