Fast food salads?

Question

So it's pretty well known that fast food is bad for you, but what about their salads? I'm going on a diet and my family likes to go out to lunch at places like McDonalds and Burger King. Are any of their salads really as healthy an option as they claim them to be for those of us who are watching out weight?

Answer 1

first, you can research the nutritional info of the salads available for the various fast food places on their websites. second, look at what's on the plate, and it'll give you a hint as to whether it's healthy or not. vegetables and grilled chicken will be good for you, even some cheese is fine. aside from that, things like bacon bits, croutons, and especially dressings, they're bad for you. even fat free dressings have lots of calories thanks to sugars. your best bet would be to eat it either raw, or find a dressing made from healthy oils (like vinaigrette).

Answer 2

it has been documented in a yahoo article from a few months ago that the salads at mcdonalds actually have more fat than a bigmac. All the fat comes from their dressing. If you are going to be using their dressing, you might as well just eat a big mac and fries. Thats how bad their dressing is. If you bring your own low fat dressing then they are very healthy salads. if you are getting chicken then get grilled instead of fried

do not think that just because its a salad then its healthy for you, there are many ways to make a salad a lot worse for you than a burger.

Answer 3

I feel your pain. I know you can get a nutrition list from all the fast food restaurants or better yet, visit their website...but, my train of thought is that any salad is going to be better for you than burgers and fries....even if you use the fattening dressing, at least the vegetables are fresh and not processed....at least you'd be getting a little fiber and a few vitamins. I've tried the salads at McDonald's (I always choose the grilled chicken, not fried) and they're pretty good and I've heard that Quizno's has good ones, also. I wish you luck, take care!

Answer 4

My favorite salad from a fast food restaurant is the Spinach Salad at Wendy's from the Dollar Menu.

Answer 5

Salads with chips in there or those with lots of other things added and then topped with a high fat dressing aren't good either. You can get the calorie and fat content sheets at those fast food places to help you make a choice. To be honest everyone should avoid those places except as rare treats, it isn't good for anyone, dieting or not.

Answer 6

McDonalds Asian Salad is the best.

Plain salads are about 150 calories.

Add about 150 for Chicken and another 90-300 for dressing.

still, not a bad meal.

I would consider skipping the chicken though, not because chicken itself is bad for you, but I seriously question that low grade overly processed chicken. You would be better off getting your calories elsewhere.

Answer 7

I saw it on the evening news that salads from McDonald have more calories than a big mac Their salads have bacons, cheese and ranch dressing and they are very high in calories. Nutrition charts are usually available at restaurants...so you should check it out.

Answer 8

Well i work at mcdonlads.I think there better than like the fries and everything. Not the crispy chicken though. Thats fried but the grilled is better i think.We still grill them with butter but its better than all that grease.Thtas if you want to even add a meat. You can get them plain too.Im geting tired of all that food myself.

Answer 9

Salad is salad no matter who makes it

Answer 10

I eat them, just request light dressing, or only use half of the dressing, and try to avoid the fried/breaded chicken