Do Calorie Counts on Menus Curb Eating? Not So Much

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Over 200,000 fast food and chain restaurants will soon include calorie counts on their menus, as mandated in the healthcare bill President Obama signed last spring. But even if our favorite fast food chains and restaurants start deluging us with caloric information, are we going to pay attention? The whole idea behind the counts is to help Americans get better informed about how much we're eating and —hopefully—start choosing foods that are lighter and healthier. And the latest study on the effect of caloric information shows that it's only marginally effective in improving eating habits.

According to the latest survey of New York City consumers, only about a sixth of fast food patrons have used calorie information to decide what to purchase – and bought less food on average – since city officials introduced a labeling system  in 2008. But those who did rely on the additional information made substantial cuts in how much they ate: on average they purchased 106 fewer calories than those who didn't pay attention to the counts.  That could lead to a weight loss of up to 10 pounds a year.

Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2011/07/27/do-calorie-counts-on-menus-curb-eating-not-so-much/#ixzz1VTCAv3JC