With help from David Zinczenko’s Eat This, Not That! (Rodale
Press; $19.95) we’ve located the good and the oh-so-bad of six popular
fast-food chains often found at airports. Read before you eat.
Dunkin’ Donuts
Choice Chow: Ham, Egg & Cheese English Muffin Sandwich
Diet Destroyer: Multigrain Bagel
Why:
The breakfast sandwich is the better choice because it has less
calories, fat, and saturated fat. If bagels are your best friend, order
a reduced-carb or plain variety and skip the cream cheese.
Starbucks
Choice Chow: Grande Sugar-Free Nonfat Vanilla Latte
Diet Destroyer: Grande 2% White Chocolate Mocha
Why:
Switching from 2% milk to nonfat milk is a nutritionally sound move,
and avoiding the white chocolate mocha saves 340 calories and 18 grams
of fat.
Aunt Annie’s
Choice Chow: Original Pretzel Without Butter
Diet Destroyer: Whole Wheat Pretzel Without Butter, with cheese sauce
Why:
You might think whole wheat is always the better choice, but people who
are watching their fat, calorie, and sodium intake benefit from
ordering the original pretzel instead. The original variety has about
half the fat of the whole-wheat recipe and clocks in at 70 calories
less.
Jamba Juice
Choice Chow: Berry Fulfilling Smoothie, 24 oz.
Diet Destroyer: Aloha Pineapple Smoothie, 24 oz.
Why:
The pineapple smoothie sits at 500 calories, the berry smoothie only
260. Plus, the berry flavor contains about half as many carbs as the
seemingly healthy pineapple blend.
Burger King
Choice Chow: Whopper Jr. (without mayo) and Garden Salad
Diet Destroyer: Tendercrisp Chicken Garden Salad with Ken’s Ranch Dressing
Why: If you hold the mayo on the Whopper Jr., the salad contains 30 grams of fat more than the burger.
Sbarro
Choice Chow: Low Carb Cheese Pizza, one slice
Diet Destroyer: Deep Dish Cheese Pizza, one slice
Why:
As the name suggests, the first option has fewer carbs than its
deep-dish counterpart, but it also cuts the calorie and sodium content
by about half.
