Last post I discussed New Year’s Resolutions. 

How are you doing with yours?

An informal poll around our office revealed that some people were having trouble with healthy eating – specifically, healthy lunchtime choices. 

Some of us thought eating at a “healthy” restaurant meant consuming fewer calories.

Not necessarily. 

Consider this: According to the Berkeley Wellness Letter, those eating at Subway (considered a “healthy choice”) underestimated calories because of the “health halo effect”. 

What is the “health halo effect”?

The phenomenon relates to people being more likely to order calorie-rich side dishes, larger drinks and indulging in dessert, all the while underestimating the calories of their main meal because it is considered, “healthy”.  In fact, a 12-inch turkey sandwich from Subway has as many calories as a Big Mac from McDonalds – and several hundred MORE calories if you add cheese and dressing. 

That can lead to substantial weight gain – and a lack of motivation towards eating healthy.

Here are some tips for making smart choices at lunch and avoiding the “health halo”:

1.  Plan and prepare your lunch the night before.  It can take less than 5 minutes to put a couple slices of turkey on a flat wrap (or skip the wrap and use lettuce leaves for bread if you want a low-carb choice), choose a lower-calorie cheese (like mozzarella), add a piece of fruit (whatever is in season – it’s cheap!) and a veggie (like some carrots, a cucumber or a pepper).  A carton of unsweetened yogurt (sweeten it yourself and it will have fewer calories than those junk-laden “fruit yogurts”) or cottage cheese can serve as a good mid-afternoon snack and these choices are easy to pack the night before.

2.  A good way to reduce your caloric intake at dinner and lunch is to take half your dinner and save it for lunch the next day.  You can look forward to it and the portion size is right.

3. Don’t avoid going out to lunch all together – you are more likely to eat too much when you do finally give in to the temptation.  Just take the lunch you buy and double what you believe to be the caloric estimate.  Then save half for dinner….or lunch tomorrow!

I’d welcome your ideas!  How do you eat healthy at lunchtime?

Warmly,

Dr. Michelle Mudge-Riley