Posting Calorie Counts does NOT encourage better eating habits

When I was first exposed to the calorie counts in New York restaurants, it certainly changed *MY* eating habits. I simply could not bring myself to order *ANYTHING* at the local McDonald's and simply went hungry until I got home. But a recent study of fast food restaurants showed that for the average shopped, the calorie counts did not lead to better choices.

It found that about half the customers noticed the calorie counts, which were prominently posted on menu boards. About 28 percent of those who noticed them said the information had influenced their ordering, and 9 out of 10 of those said they had made healthier choices as a result.

But when the researchers checked receipts afterward, they found that people had, in fact, ordered slightly more calories than the typical customer had before the labeling law went into effect, in July 2008.

This speaks poorly for human nature, and even worse for well-meaning policies. It may go to show that you can not mandate better behavior, without doing away with liberty. And I'd rather have liberty and obesity, than have neither.

Tracking Your Health

I discovered the other day that my blood pressure is currently high. Part of this is due to recent stressful events, but it also is due to my poor diet, lack of exercise, and weight gain. I tend to eat a lot of sodium and drink a lot of caffeine, so I decided to start tracking my sodium and cut back on my caffeine intake. The bad news is that sodium is in just about everything. The good news is that I rediscovered a tool and discovered another tool to help. I thought that other Mod-Bloggers might find them useful.

The first tool is for tracking. FitDay allows you to track the food that you eat, the activities you do, your weight, and your moods. It also allows you to set a weight goal and to journal. FitDay is completely free, though they do try to sell you their $20 desktop software. Selecting food in FitDay can be someone complex given the number of suggestions they give you, but if you know the nutritional information for what you are eating or drinking, you can create a custom food item.

This is where the second tool shines. My wife and I love our bread maker. Sadly, the recipe book does not include nutritional information. About.com has a free service called Calorie Count which is a great source for nutritional information. They have a tool there where you can enter a recipe, have it analyzed, and see the resulting nutritional information.