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MCDONALDS NUTRITIONAL TABLE

Following are some examples of the nutritional value of fast food.  Most of the major franchises score similarly but these are taken directly from the McDonalds nutritional table.

This page was written before McDonald's got the message and was forced to change their menu.  It is left here for historical purposes only.  In a few years we won't believe they made millions off of this menu!!!  In order to give credit where credit is due please visit their  site to get the new and improved nutritional table at McDonalds.com  Kudos' McDonalds!!!

Now, let's discuss these numbers.  I will give you the suggested calories from the pyramid diet (the one you learned about in school.)

Sedentary women and many older adults -----   about 1600

Sedentary men, teen girls, active women, children -----    about   2200

Active men and teen boys -----  about 2800

These numbers are guidelines only and diet professionals no longer recommend counting calories but do consider this number when evaluating your daily intake.

Now, let's talk about fat.  A certain amount of fat is needed in a healthy diet to supply energy and a few nutrients.  However, too much fat can increase the risk of heart disease and certain cancers.  Fat is measured in grams.  It takes one teaspoon of fat to equal four grams.  There are different kinds of fat found in foods and some are worse than others.

SATURATED FATS

These are found in dairy products made with whole milk and in meat.  Beef contains more saturated fat than chicken.  Some vegetable fats are also saturated.  They are coconut, cocoa butter, palm and palm kernel oils.  Too much saturated fat raises blood cholesterol and increases the risk of heart disease.

UNSATURATED FATS

These are found mostly in plants. Polyunsaturated fats are in sunflower, corn, safflower, soybean, and cottonseed oils.  They are less likely to cause heart disease.  Monounsaturated oils seem to lower cholesterol.  Find these in olive, peanut, and canola oil.

CALCULATING FAT GRAMS

The number of fat grams one should consume each day depends on the person's calorie requirements.  Fat should be limited to about 30% of daily calories.  Saturated fat should be limited to 10% of daily calories or 1/3 of total fat intake.

  The formula for determining fat intake requirements is as follows:

Multiply the day's calories by 0.30 to get calories from fat.

Each gram of fat has nine calories; divide the calories from fat by 9 to get grams of fat.

Example:  2200 calories x 0.30=660 calories from fat

660 calories from fat divided by 9=73 grams of fat allowed each day.

Based on 73 grams of fat per day, no more than 1/3 or 24 grams should be in saturated fat.

Don't forget, about 1/2 of this fat will come from other food groups so keep this in mind when calculating total fat intake.  So, half of 24 is 12!  Yes, 12 grams of saturated fat is all your body can process without looking for a place to store the extra (arteries, heart, chin, stomach, hips, thighs…etc.)

Now, does that fast-food high fat menu still look good?  Does it make any sense to eat the entire days fat allowance on one hamburger at a fast food franchise?  Don't forget, tally up all the other foods and beverages that you consume in a day.  Don't forget those snacks!  Now do you wonder why your pants and skirts are getting tighter?  Does this help you to understand why you feel tired and lethargic?  Suffering from mood swings?  Your body's output is directly related to your nutritional input.  Visualize the undigested fat from a fast food hamburger joint swimming through your veins (some of it sticking there), on through your heart (some of it sticking there), and reaching it's final resting place- on your stomach, hips, and thighs.  That meal provided you with very little nutrition and did your body more harm that good.  Pass the apples please.

CHOLESTEROL

This fat like substance is needed for important functions in the body.  The human body produces it’s own, and doesn't need any more from the diet.  However too much cholesterol can lead to heart disease.   Where does the rest come from?  Foods from animal sources, because their bodies produce cholesterol too.  This is why health authorities recommend limiting the amount of food from animal sources in our diets.

For more in-depth information on vegetables and their healing abilities, consider reading my new eBook.  It gives you exact information on vegetables such as  members of the allum family (onion,leeks,etc), asparagus, cruciferous family (collards,lettuce,greens,etc), beans, beets, all the way to zuchinni!!

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