An October 26, 2005 article from MedPageToday about new nutritional information on McDonald's food wrappers quotes ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava, who applauds the move -- and recognizes that wrappers can't transform American eaters:
Publishing nutritional data has become a hot political issue in Washington and in some state legislatures, including New York, where lawmakers are considering measures to force restaurants to print nutritional information on their menus.
However, whether increasing the accessibility of this nutrition information will make any dent in the current obesity epidemic remains to be seen.
"I don't know if it's going to change anybody's eating behavior," said Ruth Kava, Ph.D., R.D., director of nutrition at the American Council on Science and Health in New York. "People who are going to be very uptight about eating an extra gram of fat aren't going to go to McDonald's and eat a double cheeseburger."
Although healthy eaters who are already nutrition-label conscious are less likely to be the ones to frequent fast food restaurants, Dr. Kava said the new packaging has the potential to sway consumers who may be less informed about nutrition.
