Fast food would be as caloric as a classic restaurant according to a study. It also shows that the energy intake of individuals varies according to socio-economic criteria.
Do you feel guilty about a hamburger and fatty fries for lunch? Do you think that going to a restaurant rather than a fast food restaurant will allow you to digest more slowly and therefore gain less weight? Well, according to an American study published in the journal Public Health Nutrition, You have it all wrong. According to the survey, in fact, eating out would bring as many calories as fast food.
Results contrary to those of previous studies
In saying this, the study’s authors, Binh T. Nuygen, of the American Cancer Society, and Lisa M. Powell, of the University of Chicago, take the opposite view from other studies done so far, which claim that we are more likely to gain weight by eating in a fast food restaurant than in a traditional restaurant. The two professors were based on more recent data, bringing together 12,000 participants aged 20 to 64 years. The information comes from a large study carried out in 2003 by the National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES). The participants answered questions concerning meals taken in fast food restaurants and traditional restaurants during two successive days.
More calories in black adults
Profs Nuygen and Powell then analyzed and compared the responses between the participants. And the results are surprising, since they indicate that the net energy intake is higher after a restaurant meal than after a fast-food meal (296.38 kcal versus 194.49 kcal.) But of course, we found more saturated fat in the second (3.48 mg) than in the first (2.52 mg). Traditional catering, on the other hand, is richer in sodium and sugar (451.06 mg against 296.38 mg). The study also made a surprising discovery: the calorie intake varies according to the personal characteristics of the participants. For example, energy intake is greater in black adults than in whites and Hispanics. Low- and middle-income adults also take in more calories than high-income adults.
In this study, researchers highlight two major problems in the United States: obesity and socio-economic differences between ethnic communities They consider that “efforts to improve diet and reduce energy intake from restorative sources could actually help reduce racial and socio-economic disparities in Americans’ diets.
.