Many times we find ourselves out of the house without many food options except “fast food”. I think we all know that in general fast food is not a good food option but sometimes we have no choice, or just don’t care. It is possible to make healthier fast food options though. The point of this discussion is to have you work through some options for “healthy” fast food. Use the instructions below to construct 3 meals that fall within FDA guidelines for a “healthy” meal. We will not factor in dietary restrictions (including for medical reasons) or personal metabolic variations. You should choose foods that you would actually eat though.

Type up your resulting meals along with nutritional information, changes and sources in the discussion forum. Yes, this discussion will include some basic math in some cases and you must include those calculations when necessary. For example, if you get an Egg McMuffin without cheese (which isn’t specifically on the menu when I checked), you will need to include the total calories for the Egg McMuffin and then show the deduction for removing the cheese. (There are multiple sources for estimating the values of a slice of processed American cheese, or just look at the difference between a cheeseburger and hamburger on the lunch menu.) IMPORTANT – Make sure you include the final totals for each meal. Also include the source(s) of your information.

Part 1 – Breakfast

Choose a national/regional fast food chain (something with a drive-thru) and construct a breakfast with a beverage (water is ok but you must indicate it) that falls within the average recommended guidelines for an adult (I provide guidelines below). You can customize your meal any way you want to (“hold the cheese” for example) but you must provide documentation (web links) to your source(s) of information. You must also show your breakdown of the numbers along with any changes to the standard menu that you’ve made. Your meal should fall between 600-700 calories. Remember that any calories lose by reducing fat, you must replace with non-sugar carbs or proteins.

You should not exceed the following guidelines (+/- 10%):

Total Fat – 22g

    Saturated Fat – 7g

    Cholesterol – 100mg

Sugars – 10g

Sodium – 800mg

You should meet or exceed the following:

Total Carbs – 80g

    Fiber – 8g

Total Protein – 17g

Part 2 – Lunch

Choose a DIFFERENT national/regional fast food chain (something with a drive-thru or a sandwich shop like Subway, Blimpie, etc.) and construct a lunch with a beverage (water is ok but you must indicate it) that falls within the average recommended guidelines for an adult (I provide guidelines below). You can customize your meal any way you want to (“hold the cheese” for example) but you must provide documentation (web links) to your source(s) of information. You must also show your breakdown of the numbers along with any changes to the standard menu that you’ve made. Your meal should fall between 600-700 calories. Remember that any calories lose by reducing fat, you must replace with non-sugar carbs or proteins.

You should not exceed the following guideline (+/- 10%):

Total Fat – 22g

    Saturated Fat – 7g

    Cholesterol – 100mg

Sugars – 10g

Sodium – 800mg

You should meet or exceed the following:

Total Carbs – 80g

    Fiber – 8g

Total Protein – 17g

Part 3 – Dinner

Choose a national/regional restaurant chain (something WITHOUT a drive-thru) and construct a dinner with a beverage (water is ok but you must indicate it) that falls within the average recommended guidelines for an adult (I provide guidelines below). You can customize your meal any way you want to (“hold the cheese” for example) but you must provide documentation (web links) to your source(s) of information. You must also show your breakdown of the numbers along with any changes to the standard menu that you’ve made. Your meal should fall between 600-800 calories. Remember that any calories lose by reducing fat, you must replace with non-sugar carbs or proteins.

You should not exceed the following guidelines (+/- 10%):

Total Fat – 27g

    Saturated Fat – 8g

    Cholesterol – 120mg

Sugars – 12g

Sodium – 960mg

You should meet or exceed the following:

Total Carbs – 96g

    Fiber – 10g

Total Protein – 20g