Worst Kids' Foods In America

Posted on Oct 22nd 2009 5:00PM by Deborah Dunham

Filed Under: Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

When you go out to eat, you might try to do right by your diet and steer clear of the fattiest meals on the menu. But what about your children? Kids are thinking about taste -- not calories -- when they pick their dinner. Unfortunately, children's menus are packed with unhealthy dishes that could easily contain 100 percent of your little one's daily recommended calories.

Children's Health magazine took a look at the kids' meals at restaurants around the country and rounded up the 20 worst foods for kids in America.

The biggest offender on the list was Uno's Chicago Grill's Kids' Kombo with Fries. This hefty plate of cheese sticks, dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets and fries dished up a whopping 1,250 calories, 79 grams of fat and 2,850 mg of sodium. Add Uno's kid's sundae, (voted the worst dessert) and your child could wind up eating 2,110 calories in one sitting. To put it in perspective, the average nine-year-old needs 1,600 calories a day. Oh, and if you think ordering Uno's pizza is any better, think again: Their deep dish pepperoni took the award for the worst pizza for kids, packing in 980 calories and 70 grams of fat.

Other offenders on the list include Burger King's 1,100-calorie kids' double cheeseburger, fries and a Coke, On the Border's 980-calorie bean and cheese nachos for kids, and Baskin-Robbins small Snickers shake, which is loaded with 1,040 calories and 50 grams of sugar.

Just like adult meals, portion sizes for kids have gotten out of control. The average fast food kids' meal has 214 calories more than the same meal would have in the 70s. So is it any wonder that child obesity rates have tripled in the past 20 years? Today, one-third of children are overweight, putting the next generation at greater risk for heart attacks, strokes and diabetes.

While restaurants can shoulder some of the blame, the health of our kids ultimately comes down to the choices parents make -- parents who, by the way, are reportedly spending more money on fast food than books, music, movies and video games combined.

It isn't just kids' meals that are packing in ridiculously high calories. Click on the gallery below to see some of the worst fast foods for adults.

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Outrageous Fast Food

Domino's BreadBowl Pasta, 3-Cheese Mac-N-Cheese, whole dish

Calories: 1460
Fat: 56 g
Sodium: 2840 mg

You know it's mac and cheese and you know it's surrounded in calorie-loaded carbs, but did you know this deceptive dish counts as two servings? And that's probably why this order puts you near your daily fat allowance and way past the recommended daily salt intake. If you have the willpower -- eat one serving, or half the bowl!
*Note: The nutrition information isn't available on Domino's Web site. AOL Health requested the information from Domino's directly.

Rachel Been, AOL

Getty Images North America

Outrageous Fast Food

Rachel Been, AOL

Domino's BreadBowl Pasta, Chicken Alfredo, whole dish

Calories: 1400
Fat: 50 g
Sodium: 2140 mg

If you're craving chicken alfredo, and you happen to be at Domino's, consider ordering their bread-less version. In comparison it contains a lighter 600 calories, 29 fat grams and 1080 mg of sodium.

*Note: The nutrition information isn't available on Domino's Web site. AOL Health requested the information from Domino's directly.

Rachel Been, AOL

Quiznos Tuna Melt, large

Calories: 1760 calories
Fat: 133 g
Sodium:2120 mg

If you want to stick to the government's health guidelines, eat this over the space of two days or you'll go overboard on fat. And hold the dressing on this one -- it'll save you 370 calories and 40 fat grams. Yikes!

Melanie J. Kramer, AOL

Wendy's Premium Fish Fillet Sandwich

Calories: 470
Fat: 24 g
Sodium: 930 mg

Don't let the "premium" and "fish" in the name fool you into thinking this new order is lean. For a truly lighter option from Wendy's try the Grilled Chicken Go Wrap, which contains 260 calories, 11 fat grams and 760 mg of sodium.

Rachel Been, AOL

Ruby Tuesday's Boston Blue Burger

Calories: 1466
Fat: 98 g
Sodium: Not available

This burger contains more than a day and a third's worth of fat grams -- or a fat content equivalent to four meals. It also contains about three-fourths of a day's worth of calories, and who knows what Ruby Tuesday's doesn't want you to know about the sodium content!

*Nutrition Information varies by location.

Keith Morrison, AOL

Dunkin' Donuts Waffle Breakfast Sandwich

Calories: 390
Fat: 23 g
Sodium: 1000 mg

While this bad boy doesn't compare to the train wreck of a breakfast platter from McDonald's (see slide 22), do you really want to eat nearly half a day's worth of sodium for breakfast?

Keith Morrison, AOL

Ruby Tuesday's Veggie Burger

Calories: 1007
Fat: 53 g
Sodium: Not available

Okay, this is a tough one to understand. Store-bought veggie patties like those available from Garden Burger, Boca Burger and Morningstar Farms, usually amount to about 100 calories and 5 grams of fat without any fixings. Which begs the question, just what kind of fixings is Ruby Tuesday's adding in? To be fair, this meat-free version is lower in calories and fat than most of the other burger options available from Ruby Tuesday's.

*Nutrition Information varies by location.

Keith Morrison, AOL

Ruby Tuesday's Kids' Mini Turkey Burgers and Fries

Calories: 873
Fat: 46 g
Sodium: Not available

If you're watching your weight while eating out, you might think that the kid's menu is a safe place to order from. That's not necessarily the case at Ruby Tuesday's. While the kids' minis are certainly lighter than their adult counterparts, they also contain about 70 percent of the fat adults should consume in a day.

Note: Dietary recommendations for calorie, fat and sodium intake are not available.

*Nutrition Information varies by location.

Keith Morrison, AOL

Hardee's Monster Thickburger

Calories: 1420
Fat: 108 g
Sodium: 2770 mg

This monster tops out your daily fat and sodium. Talk about scary!

James A. Finley, AP

Burger King Steakhouse Burger

Calories: 950
Fat: 59 g
Sodium: 1950 mg

This new BK burger packs half the calories and nearly all of the sodium and fat you should have in one day. If you eat it, don't even think about ordering a side of fries. A small order would tack on an extra 340 calories, 17 fat grams and 590 mg of sodium.

Keith Morrison, AOL

Where can you find the best kids' meal in America? Try your own kitchen.

8 Comment

Tags: childhood obesity, ChildhoodObesity, overweight kids, OverweightKids, worst foods for kids, worst kids meals, worst restaurant food, WorstFoodsForKids, WorstKidsMeals, WorstRestaurantFood

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Marilyn 10-22-2009 @ 9:22PM

Pizzeria Uno is the best pizza in the whole country!!!

Melissa 10-22-2009 @ 9:42PM

You must not be from NYC...

Dan 10-23-2009 @ 4:26AM

Ugg , that stuff stinks , though it's better than pizza hut or domino's
Ok maybe I just don't like Chicago pizza, I would rather have a Scisillian pizza or a nice sclice of NY pizza pie

phil 10-22-2009 @ 10:23PM

Agreed. Pizza Uno is the best pizza I have ever tried. Nothing wrong with ordering a bit, as long as you don't do it 7 times a week! Duh! How about moderation in all things? That's what we should teach our kids.
What's worse....you could hang with some people that are vegetarians. Have you ever been around someone with tofu breath?

Master Shake 10-23-2009 @ 1:29AM

Vegetarians are CONSTANTLY getting sick. For all of their hype about how healthy it is to avoid red meat, most of them have bad skin problems, they get every single cold or flu that comes around, and by the time they are 50 they have bone and joint problems.

mike 10-22-2009 @ 11:59PM

Thanks for the tip AOL. I am naturally thin but well muscled and my two grade school kids are thin like I was at their age. I always seek out high caloric foods for them when given the chance by my wife. I get my son (10 yoa) the McDonald's double cheeseburger happy meal along with a 2nd double cheeseburger. Great nutrition in terms of total calories as well as grams of fat, protein and carbs. Honey buns and chocolate milk are staples for breakfast while driving them to school. And speaking of the school, they 'taught' them nutrition and my son came home complaining that fast foods were not nutritious or good for you or some hogwash. I told them not to listen and that I know far more about what they need nutritionally than any school teacher. I am not being facitious at all and look forward to ordering the kids combo at Uno's.

badgirl 10-23-2009 @ 3:52AM

I think that it's stupid of them to say what they did about Baskin-Robbins. Baskin-Robbins is ice cream, not a meal. They also for got to look at the sugar free ice cream that Baskin-Robbins offers for dieters and people with diabetis.

Seth 7-13-2010 @ 2:46PM

Marilyn, try some non-chain pizza. You'd be surprised how real and fresh tasting it can be. Local NY pizza is the best. Of course, it's all a matter of taste, but don't base all pizza on your experience of Dominos, Uno's, Pizza Hut, or Little Caeser's. Try the real stuff.

Everyone should try a plain cheese pizza some time. Yeah, everyone thinks it's about the toppings, but try it plain. Seriously, plain is amazing. It's like vanilla ice cream or a glass of ice cold water. Simple, refreshing, and amazing.

Phil and Master Shake... learn something about vegetarians before you condemn the lot of them. I am and am almost NEVER sick. Not all vegetarians know how to eat healthy. They simply stop eating meat to be cool, and buy the side salad at restaurants which consists of iceberg lettuce and bottled dressing.

You want to complain about tofu breath? Maybe tofu should be made right. Ever been to the men's room the day after pizza night, when everyone has pepperoni and no one can actually digest it? I think I'll take tofu breath, thank you.

Bone and joint problems, seriously? Again, if you simply stop eating meat and add no other variety to your diet of bread and iceberg lettuce, you'll have all sorts of problems. If I'm wrong, I guess I'll take my chances on needing a hip replacement over triple bypass surgery when I'm 50.