Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Study Concludes Menu Calorie Counts Are Useless
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Oct 18, 2014
Modified Oct 18, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Oct 18, 2014
Modified Oct 18, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Back in the Bloombergian days of yore (circa 2009), the city mandated that all chain restaurants display menu items' calorie counts in an attempt to help New Yorkers make healthier eating choices. Though studies offered up mixed results, the health department claimed the calorie counts were having a positive effect on chain store consumers—but now, a new study says restaurants are better off advertising the number of miles it takes to burn off an entree instead of standalone calories. Chipotle menus are going to start taking an hour to read, aren't they?
The study [pdf], published by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, found that consumers typically don't quite grasp how to measure calories, supporting studies that have shown that menu calorie counts are ineffective. Instead, researchers suggest menus list the number of miles one needs to walk in order to burn off those calories. The study found that teenagers in low-income Baltimore neighborhoods who were exposed to signs showing the number of miles they needed to walk to burn off a particular soda ended up purchasing smaller sodas and sodas with fewer calories. "People don't really understand what it means to say a typical soda has 250 calories," Sara Bleich, one of the Johns Hopkins researchers, told NPR, noting that listing necessary miles "may be the more persuasive way."
This is old news for New Yorkers, considering our health department's already run anti-obesity ads that transform calories into walking distance. But considering a portion of the Affordable Care Act will require all of the country's chain restaurants to display calorie counts, the Johns Hopkins study could prove to be helpful on a national scale. Then again, Mayor de Blasio might be resurrecting Bloomberg's now-dead soda ban one day, so perhaps none of us will need to walk off those Coke calories in the near future.
Tagged
aca
calorie counts
calories
public health
Rebecca Fishbein
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
Where are the cheapest drinks in NYC? A new report details the city's average prices.
The median price of a cocktail in the city is now $16, and $9 for a draft beer.
By
Hannah Frishberg
Published Oct 19, 2026
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .