FDA has ideas for restaurant menus

Restaurants are in a prime position to help improve people’s diets and combat obesity, says a government-commissioned report released Friday.

Requested and funded by the Food and Drug Administration, the report encourages restaurants to shift the emphasis of their marketing to lower-calorie choices and to include more such options on menus.

It also suggests that restaurants jigger portion sizes and the variety of foods available in mixed dishes to reduce the overall number of calories taken in by diners.

It said bundling meals with more fruits and vegetables also could improve nutrition, as would letting consumers know how many calories are in a meal.

Americans now consume a third of their daily calories outside the home.