Nutrition Science and Everyday Application - beta v 0.1

OBESITY EPIDEMIC: CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS 411
Figure 7.21. Farmers markets can expand healthy food options for neighborhoods and build
connections between consumers and local farmers.
• Place nutrition and calorie content on restaurant and fast food menus to raise
awareness of food choices. 9 Beginning in 2018, as part of the Affordable Care Act,
chain restaurants with more than 20 locations were required to add calorie
information to their menus, and some had already done so voluntarily. There isn’t
yet enough research to say whether having this information improves customers’
choices; some studies show an effect and others don’t. 10 Many factors influence
people’s decisions, and the type of restaurant, customer needs, and menu
presentation all likely matter. For example, some studies show that healthconscious
consumers choose lower calorie menu items when presented with
nutrition information, but people with food insecurity may understandably choose
higher calorie items to get more “bang for their buck”. 11 Research has also shown
that adding interpretative images—like a stoplight image labeling menu choices as
green or red as shorthand for high or low nutrient density—can help. And a 2018
study found that when calorie counts are on the left side of English-language
menus, people order lower-calorie menu items. Putting calorie counts on the right
side of the menu (as is more common) doesn’t have this effect, likely because the
English language is read from left to right. 12 Some studies have also found that
restaurants that implement menu labeling offer lower-calorie and more nutrientdense
options, indicating that menu labeling may push restaurants to look more
closely at the food they serve. 10,13