Calories on the menu - just why?

[Figmentofmyimagination]

Visited pizza express last night to catch up with a girlfriend - first visit since pre pandemic. Ordered my favourite fiorentina pizza with spinach and egg but my enjoyment was somewhat diminished by reading the 950 calorie count on the menu. I understand that this is the law now. Who decided that this is a good idea? Absolutely crazy.

@Girliefriendlikespuppies

Bloody hell the lack of empathy on this thread is astounding.

Anorexia has the highest mortality rate out of any mental illness and a similar mortality rate in children to leukaemia. It can effect anyone of any age, background or race and it causes huge amounts of suffering not only for the people effected but for everyone trying to care for them.

To dismiss or minimise concerns of parents of sick children is beyond cruel.

I sincerely hope none of you have to watch what anorexia does to a child, it's horrific.

Calories on menus will cause issues for these children and anyone with an ED, there should be an easily accessible calorie free menu available and this should be mandatory in all restaurants.

As a previous poster said, the empathy appears to be limited to one side of the debate. Many inpatient eating disorder units use calories on meal plans. This point seems to be ignored. Some people need to know what their caloric intake is to ensure they’re eating enough. There are some people with EDs for whom this will empower to be able to eat out for the first time and to have some semblance of normality.

Calories in menus will not “causes issues” for all people with EDs. I’m a bit fed up of certain voices in the ED online community thinking they speak for everyone.

Given the number of people who are overweight or obese vastly outweighs those with eating disorders, I think this is the right decision for wider society. Not everyone with an ED thinks this is a bad thing either. It really is a minority…

@Roxy69

Can't see why this should be a problem to anyone. Of all the things to get annoyed about!

Haven’t you bothered reading any of the thread? It’s been clearly explained where the potential difficulties are.

As a mom of a teen with an ED, I haven't been saying no to this - but I have been asking for mandating that restaurants have non calorie labelled menus available (as opposed to current position which is they 'can" have non calorie labelled menus available). I don't think I've not shown empathy for people who want to see calories - but I know how devastating an impact this can have on some of those (particularly teens) with an ED who may well struggle enormously with this.

When you've seen your daughter trying to survive on less than 400 calories a day, self harming in multiple ways, now in recovery but dealing with a body that is very physically damaged - possibly irrecoverably and having lost cognitive function, setting her back in her schooling aspirations, then hearing her saying that this govt action does impact on her and invites anorexia to start to step up its campaign to - lets be honest - kill her - then yes, I'm angry. But, again I'm not asking for this to be reversed, just augmented.

To pre answer questions - in our experience, all of DD's menus as an inpatient had calories removed. Yes, DD knows the calories in lots of dishes but there is a mind trick that anorexia often allows anorexics to eat at least a little.

This is why we need calories on menus - because there are many cheap and cheerful restaurants that serve mountains of horribly unhealthy food to people who either don't know better or can't afford to eat anywhere better.

How patronising. So we need calories on menus so that poor or ignorant people can stop going to restaurants which are the only ones they can afford? Or they can go, but they must have the one salad on the menu or something?

It's just sheer snobbery to think that expensive restaurants don't also serve highly calorific food, or that it's only poor or stupid people who go out and gorge themselves occasionally.

Most people (even poor ones) will generally have a reasonable idea which are the lighter options and the very highly calorific items on a menu. But if they eat out infrequently, that choice isn't really important compared with their daily eating habits.

I can absolutely appreciate that having calories on menu can be triggering for people with an ED. I do count calories as I need to lose a lot of weight so I find it useful. Usually at a chain restaurant I was able to Google their nutritional info anyway. I myself am shocked/not shocked to see some foods are my entire daily intake (1400cals)

I'm very torn on this.
On the one hand I like being able to make an informed decision when eating away from home however one the other hand it can spoil a meal if wanting a treat out.

Also I feel it misses its target audience. E.g. I don't think that someone that eats out at KFC, McDonald's etc etc several times per week and is obese will care or even look at the calories. Everyone know these things are high in calories but eats them anyway.

Surely people with eating disorders don’t go to restaurants? I assume this would be a nightmare for them rather than a treat?
For the rest of us it’s a slight guide. I’m sure the calorie count is not totally accurate and healthy food is more than just calories.

shreakin This is why we need calories on menus - because there are many cheap and cheerful restaurants that serve mountains of horribly unhealthy food to people who either don't know better or can't afford to eat anywhere better. Expensive restaurants have calorific food too, but people are less likely to get fat on food they can't afford to eat often.

How ridiculous! Do you realise that some of the dishes in places like Wagamamas have double the calories of meals in Mcds?

Surely people with eating disorders don’t go to restaurants?

Ffs. They do. As has been pointed out on the thread many times.

Of course people with eating disorders go to restaurants!

Some are children and are forced there by their parents. Some are adults who have to go with work, family and friends!!!

With regard to calories, unless you have an ED or have ever calorie counted I there is a lot of unrealistic ignorance surrounding calories. My partner for instance hasn’t a realistic clue about calories in food really, a vague understanding (cheese = probably bad) whereas I could look at a food and guesstimate it realistically, he admits he would under estimates calories in a meal. Underestimating is why they have been put on the menu, to make a more educated decision and think about their consumption.

I am obese so I know how it works, denial and ignorance around food it isn’t just about having an unhealthy relationship with food. I work with a lady who is very overweight and absolutely convinced she eats healthily 90% of the time. A lot of people do eat emotionally but they aren’t really aware of it (yet) and can actually believe they are making good choices

I still agree it is triggering to those who have an ED, that’s not unreasonable to say. I can see the benefit though of education

@Fairyliz

Surely people with eating disorders don’t go to restaurants? I assume this would be a nightmare for them rather than a treat? For the rest of us it’s a slight guide. I’m sure the calorie count is not totally accurate and healthy food is more than just calories.

Really? It is a nightmare but an unavoidable one.

It is good because it will put pressure on restaurants to reduce the calorie content of their food as people will be put off by dishes with high calorific value.

@Florenz

It is good because it will put pressure on restaurants to reduce the calorie content of their food as people will be put off by dishes with high calorific value.

I think they just expand their lighter meals section.

This is not good news for those with eating disorders.

@Figmentofmyimagination

I disagree. Unless I am a complete outlier, a visit to a restaurant is an unusual treat. Anyone who needs to know how many calories are in their pizza can look it up on one of the many apps that are available. Everyone else should be allowed to enjoy their pizza in peace.

Totally agree with this calories are misleading & a bit of a con. I also think that people buy into them but they're nothing to do with health or healthy living, health is about balance, just because someone skimps on pizza doesn't mean they're healthy. The problem is that fat has become the enemy but there's tons of plus size people who are healthy - we all have different body types. I take no notice of things like calories, it's man made nonsense & that's my choice - I just try to live my best life & find that life is complicated enough without throwing unnecessary calorie counting into the mix! Enjoy your pizza 🍕

@Booklover3

This is not good news for those with eating disorders.

Is over-eating not considered an eating disorder? Even if it doesn't formally have that definition, perhaps it should. There are vastly more people over-eating than there are under-eating.

I'm not obese, but I do put on weight if I'm not careful and really appreciate menus that have a good range of healthier choices. On the Hungry Horse menu that I referred to in my earlier post I had to search quite hard to find something light - they seem to keep a few slabs of frozen salmon in their freezer for such occasions, ready to be served up with iceberg lettuce, but there wasn't much choice. This is significant because these cheap and cheerful pub chain menus are everywhere - fuelled by Tesco Voucher discounts - and many people regularly eat out there, or at cheap fast food chains like McDonalds. Even the salads at many of these places are doused in very high calorie dressings.

Do you realise that some of the dishes in places like Wagamamas have double the calories of meals in Mcds?

Another good reason to put calories on menus.

@Fairyliz

Surely people with eating disorders don’t go to restaurants? I assume this would be a nightmare for them rather than a treat? For the rest of us it’s a slight guide. I’m sure the calorie count is not totally accurate and healthy food is more than just calories.

Yes they do, anorexic people often obsess over the calories in the menu - & people who believe (rightly or wrongly) that they are overweight will be probably doing the same. My DS had a severe Eating Disorder for many years & going out was difficult for him & often he wouldn't eat anything but when he did it was all very controlled & calorie counted everything.

NB eating disorders have nothing to do with food & a lot about anxiety, social insecurity & controlling the environment.

He is in a much better place after 12 years in & out of eating disorder units - for those who have been told after a couple of years you'll never recover - you can, there is hope. Not one of the professional people working with him ever believed he would recover, but he found a way out. There's even been a professional paper written about him & his recovery.

He still struggles with the underlying issues (anxiety etc) but is a healthy weight (even slightly over what would be considered a healthy weight), and now doesn't buy into calories, food obsession or control of body weight at all.
If you've ever been close to someone with a severe & enduring ED you will know that the most important thing is that they're alive, and recovery or anything close to it is a dream come true.

@Strangeways19 good to hear about your son. I'd always viewed EDs as an addiction - you'd be forever in recovery rather than recovered. Great that your son got help x

Surely making the calories on the menu option is something someone could ask for. I have a friend who was anorexic in the past. She went for a meal with her DH and two kids. Went to order what she always orders but they had added the calories and she was unable to order or eat. She's battled hard. It's so unfair. She opened up to us about how this shift has made her feel which means it's serious. She will now only be able to eat in restaurants who do not have to publish this.
And yes, people with ED's eat out. The ignorance on here is astonishing.

@LadyGAgain

Surely making the calories on the menu option is something someone could ask for. I have a friend who was anorexic in the past. She went for a meal with her DH and two kids. Went to order what she always orders but they had added the calories and she was unable to order or eat. She's battled hard. It's so unfair. She opened up to us about how this shift has made her feel which means it's serious. She will now only be able to eat in restaurants who do not have to publish this. And yes, people with ED's eat out. The ignorance on here is astonishing.

It sounds like some restaurants are offering a choice of menus.

The arguments on both sides have been made loud and clear, and I personally think the balance has tipped the right way.

@ Strangeways19 are you being serious that the energy in food (calories) is man made nonsense? As in, a science denier? If you don’t want to count calories or have any issues with your weight or don’t want to use this method, that is not the same thing as saying that it is man made nonsense that as humans we burn calories just by being alive, and we consume calories to stay alive.

It's also worth mentioning that the new legislation only applies to cafes, pubs and restaurants with more than 250 employees, so there will still be plenty of options for people who want to avoid outlets with calories on the menu.

They have been putting calories on the menus in America for a while and obesity rates have continued to go up. There's absolutely no evidence this will help tackle anything.

Yes I can empathise if you want to know and feel it will help you, as I've said repeatedly all I'm asking for is mandatory non calorie menus for those that need them.

My dd went from being a care free happy teen (then she was 14) to a hollow, empty shell. The battle she and I have had to get her to where we are now has been nothing short of miraculous. This absolutely will massively set her back. Can you imagine seeing your child so tormented by eating a sandwich that they bang their head off the wall and threaten suicide?

For those saying people with EDs don't eat out?! Eating out in restaurants, cafes, take aways and in all the usual places you get food is a huge part of the recovery treatment plan. I want my dd to completely recover and live a normal life which includes going out for dinner sometimes!

I also dispute that it's the minority in the ED community that have taken issue with this. The charity Beat and ED advocates Hope Virgo and Tabitha Farrah have all been trying to raise awareness on this issue and are asking for it to be mandatory for restaurants to provide calorie free menus.

In all of the forums I'm in there's been widespread dismay and anger about this law.