McDonald's, Burger King cut down on fat: study
16 Jul 2010
A new study by University of Minnesota School of Public Health has found that fast-food joints including McDonald's and Burger King have cut down on trans-fat and saturated fat content in their foodstuffs.
The research tested the composition of trans-fat and saturated fat in french fries from five major fast food chains including McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Jack in the Box and Dairy Queen.
Trans-fat is considered bad for health as it increases the chances of cardiac trouble by clogging the arteries and increasing LDL (low-density lipoprotein) bad-cholesterol levels.
The results showed McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's have significantly lowered the unhealthy fat content between 1997 and 2008.
The other two joints had reduced their fatty contents since 2008. Saturated fatty acid content of the fries at these chains also decreased.
The researchers used archival versions of the Nutrition Coordinating Center's food and nutrient database, which catalogues the nutrients of more than 18,000 foods-changes in the trans-fat and saturated fat levels in French fries.
The findings suggest that restaurant chains may be responsive to health concerns; Americans on average get about 10 per cent of their calories from fast food.