Menu Labeling Leads to Calorie Cutting

In the wake of super-sizing, restaurants may now be doing something to actually help downsize our nation's obesity problem by revealing calorie information on menus.

According to a new study in the American Journal of Public Health, restaurant menus that included calorie information encouraged customers to eat less -- or, at least, eat better. What's more, menus that also provided diners with the recommended number of daily calories offered an even bigger incentive to cut back, according to Reuters Health.

In a small study of 303 adults, researchers from Yale University tested the effects of menus with calorie content and a line stating that the average adult should consume 2,000 calories a day. The study group was randomly assigned to order from one of three menus: One with no calorie labeling, one with calorie labeling and one with calorie labeling plus the 2,000 calorie recommendation.

Overall, the research revealed that those in the third category consumed 14 percent fewer calories than those who ordered from the other menus. Not only that, but study participants in this group also reported that their food intake for the remainder of the day was 250 calories less than those in the other two groups.

This research comes after an earlier finding that calories on menus did not affect what people ordered in low income neighborhoods in New York City. The Yale study, however, adds to evidence from other studies that menu labeling can be effective.

Christina Roberto, a doctoral candidate at Yale who led the study, told Reuters Health that menu labeling not only provided a positive influence on calorie intake, but adding the number of calories a person should get each day "turned out to be really important." Roberto added, "By putting that 'anchor' in, you can maximize the effectiveness of menu labeling."

Many fast-food chains and coffee shops in New York City and some other cities have already begun providing calorie information, but additional menu labeling may soon become a national mandate. According to Roberto, the current health care reform bills would have all restaurants include the daily calorie recommendation on their menus.

For more ways to cut calories when eating out, dine at one of America's top 10 healthiest restaurants.