Will calorie labeling make healthy eating easier?

World Wide Web | Will calorie labeling make healthy eating easier? | This week McDonalds will start displaying calorie information in all 1,200 of thier UK fast food outlets, as part governments plans to encourage calorie labeling in restaurants - designed to help encourage people to choose a healthier option as they order in restaurants.

The goverment's responsibility deal aims to give people choice, and encourage healthy eating even in the depths of a fast food outlet - notorious for serving meals with an unexpectedly high calorie content. Coffee shops are keen to get on board too, which chains like Starbucks signing up - which the goverment hopes will help encourage more people to choose options like an Americano, with just 17 calories, over a hot chocolate with whipped cream, which can have up to 556 calories.

Some people, however, have questioned the effectiveness of such a scheme - with some claiming that anyone entering a fast food restaurant is surely aware that the calorie content of most of the food is high, meaning that they are unlikely to change their mind upon seeing a healthier option.

But for those who are trying to keep healthy, the move is likely to be welcomed - and at least this way we can be sure that an innocent enough looking coffee or sandwhich won't turn out to be half of our daily calorie intake.