Learn to Spot Menu Dangers When Dining Out

Don’t let enjoying a meal out a restaurant ruin your commitment to living well and eating healthy. By studying menu descriptions, you can usually identify dishes that have a lot of hidden fat and salt. Primarily the cholesterol and saturated fat in the foods you eat increase your cholesterol levels. When eating out, it is important that you can spot the dangers on the menu to limit your consumption of fat, sodium, and calories.

As with most things for living well, moderation and sensibility rather than depriving yourself, are keys to making a healthy eating plan sustainable. You can always eat out and eat healthy without making major sacrifices. Speak up. Restaurants today honor all sorts of requests from a more health-conscious diner. Order you favorite foods grilled, baked, broiled, or steamed. Select dishes prepared in little olive oil instead of butter.

Whether you are trying to lose a few pounds or make dramatic changes to your lifestyle, much of the difficulty of dining out can be avoid by following a few tips:

• Plan in Advance – If you get to pick the restaurant where you plan to eat out, you should select one that has health-conscious options for customers who choose to eat well. Look for preparations without deep frying or heavy cream and butter.
• Stay Hydrated – Studies have shown that drinking sweetened beverages or juices with your meal can significantly increase your intake of calories, thus leading to weight gain. However, drinking plain water with meals showed no such effect.
• Ask for Substitutions – A simple way to reduce calories, saturated fat, added sugar and salt is to ask for substitutions and changes to food preparation methods. In some cases, a restaurant will make half-portions of popular dishes.
• Order Colorful Foods – According to any food pyramid, you should be eating up to nine servings of vegetables and fruits each day. Ordering a colorful plate of food when dining out will ensure you are consuming vitamins, nutrients, and fiber.

Although it is a good idea to limit the number of times you dine out each week, following your plan can allow you to make healthier choices when you do eat out. Don't worry if you need to eat out over the holidays, with a little willpower and some tips for eating healthy, you can make smart food decisions and keep your commitment to living well.

Metabolic Research Center provides personalized menus that work for almost everyone, including individuals with certain medical restrictions and food allergies. Plus, we show you how to use what you’ve learn to enjoy a delicious guilt-free meal when dining out. Preparing a holiday meal. Check out healthy recipes at Metabolic Research Center online.

We've been helping clients develop successful strategies for a healthy eating out or dining in for more than three decades.