Hidden Shock Factor

After years and years of enjoying eating out, one may not have ever taken the time discover all the junk inside commercially made foods. Advertising labels print the safe stuff, only the information that pass USDA inspection. Prepared foods are lined up in the pantries of restaurants, waiting to be assembled and brought to the table of a hungry diner. Chain restaurants know something we don't. Are you ready for the truth?

The following links show the breakdown of content found in each of these salads. Don't get too grossed out!

Salads from Subway
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/subway/tuna/6/526

Salads from Wendy's
http://balanceoffood.typepad.com/balance_of_food/2010/07/wendys-salads-have-better-ingredients-but-still-too-much-fat-sugar-sodium.html

Salads from McDonalds
http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/junkfoods/mcdonald-nutrition-salads.html

Salads from Applebees
http://www.healthy-eating-centre.com/applebees-nutrition-facts.html

Salads from Bob Evans
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/bob-evans/cranberry-pecan-chicken-salad/38/4031

Salads from Cheesecake Factory (scroll way down)
http://calorielab.com/news/2007/07/28/calorie-pusher-comes-to-town-the-cheesecake-factory-hits-rochester/

Salads from Chick-Fil-A
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/chick-fil-a/chick-fil-a-chick-n-strips-salad/27/3027

Salads from Max & Erma's
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/max-and-ermas/hula-bowl-without-breadstick/152/12102

Salads from Boston Market
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/boston-market/market-chopped-salad-dressing/52/5110

Salads from East of Chicago
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/east-of-chicago/chef-salad/296/16348

Salads from Skyline Chili
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/skyline-chili/southwest-chicken-salad/251/45491

AND THE WINNER IS....drum roll please...
CRACKER BARRELL - ACTUALLY A HEALTHY SALAD!!!!
http://calorielab.com/restaurants/cracker-barrel-old-country-store/side-dish-tossed-salad/28/25883

The fat and sodium content in the above salads is staggering. Everything but the "real thing"! The following link explains how restaurant foods contain higher amounts of fat and sodium than they are willing to admit.

http://www.cspinet.org/reports/dinersgu.html

When you consider the cost of buying fresh produce at the market and then compare it to the unrealistic low price of that same item on a menu somewhere, you can't help but assume it's probably not real food. Fillers and additives make a little go a long way. An egg used to be an egg. Not anymore. A hamburger used to be a hamburger. Not anymore. Not to mention the steroids given to livestock make their way into our bodies altering our metabolic rate. It's difficult to find a REAL hamburger anymore!

Calorie conscious individuals genuinely feel they are adhering to disciplined moderation when they order a salad at a restaurant. Thankfully, there are few independent restaurants that will use fresh produce daily, offering their guests a guarantee of the finest quality mother earth has available. These will always be the safest places to dine out. Many use fresh seasonal produce from local farmers, bringing the farm directly to the table.

Eating out should be fun. But unfortunately the percentage of food poisoning and bacteria levels found in commercialized food is on the rise. There is no quick fix to this problem, except to understand that new measures are being taken in the food industry to yield more for less, because cheaper is better. The more chemicals added to their products brings the cost of their production down, while the cost of our health goes up.

Fresh is best; when you prepare it at home, or dine out at an independently owned restaurant. It's not a hard equation. Fresh = healthy. Chemicals = dangerous.