Fast Food Options for the Health Conscious

Not all fast-food chains are created equal. Some offer more healthful options than others. By healthful, we mean lower-fat dishes (relative to those of other chains) and, ideally, some veggies to go with all those refined carbs. We’ve sized up the menus at the nation’s fast-food heavyweights – to help keep you from becoming one.

McDonald’s
Although it ditched the McLean a few years back and its new burgers seem to be growing bigger and badder, Mickey D’s still offers a grilled chicken deluxe without mayo that has only 5 grams of fat. Better yet, its grilled chicken salad deluxe contains only 1.5 grams of fat when you dress it with the fat-free herb vinaigrette. If you must have a burger, the plain hamburger weighs in with 260 calories and 9 grams of fat. That’s 22 grams less than a Big Mac and roughly equal to a small order of fries.

Burger King
The nation’s number 2 fast food isn’t trying harder, nutrition-wise. Burger King’s burgers and fries both pack more fat than the McDonald’s versions, and even its mayo-free grilled chicken sandwich, the BK Broiler, has 4 grams more fat than its archrival. Worse, most Burger Kings have done away with their salad bars.

KFC
Skip all the fried stuff and choose a piece of Tender Roast breast meat. It packs 11 grams of fat, but if you peel off the skin you can slash that by more than half. The Colonel also gives you a chance to sneak in some veggies, offering corn on the cob, green beans, barbecued baked beans and Mean Greens, all of them better than the coleslaw and potato salad. But stay away from the Chunky Chicken pot pie. It may sound wholesome, but 42 grams of fat (a third of them saturated) lurk in the crust and gravy.

Taco Bell
A grilled chicken soft taco has a mere 7 grams of fat, but most folks don’t quit after one taco. The Fiesta and Supreme flatbread Gordita sandwiches range from 10 to 14 grams of fat. Beware of the taco salad – its 52 grams of fat (15 of them saturated) bring shame to the word “salad.”

Subway
This chain has at least seven 6-inch subs with 6 grams of fat or less, including its turkey breast, veggie, ham and roast beef subs, and its wraps contain no more than 10 grams of fat. Load up on the lettuce, tomatoes, onions, peppers, pickles and olives. Subway also gets kudos for making its tuna and seafood salads with light mayonnaise.

Now you’ll know where to turn the next time the food court beckons.