by Rosalyn Carson-DeWitt, MD

While most people think that the salads offered at fast food restaurants are 
healthy, nutritious choices, the truth may be quite different. Fast food 
salads vary widely in the nutrition category. While some salads are 
reasonable choices, many fast food restaurants soup up their salads with a 
variety of less-healthy, fat- and sodium-laden items, such as fried chicken, 
creamy full fat dressings, sour cream, and lots of cheese, bacon, nuts, 
fried croutons, and taco chips or shells. Less prevalent or completely 
absent are the nutritious, high-fiber salad items such as beans, chick peas, 
and a wide variety of fresh vegetables.

So, what's a hungry person to do? Here are some suggestions for doctoring 
up the available salads to optimize their nutritional statistics:

Beware Deceptive Information
While all of the fast food restaurants have nutritional information 
available on all of their menu offerings, some of the information can be a 
bit misleading. For example, some of the information only gives nutritional 
statistics on the actual salad, leaving off the information about dressing, 
croutons, cheese, or other packets of ingredients that are included with 
your salad. Make sure you read the information carefully.

Remember: An Iceberg Sank the Titanic
Choose more complex greens than plain old iceberg lettuce. Iceberg lettuce 
is calorie-free, but it's also nearly nutrition- and fiber-free. Worst of 
all, it's essentially flavor-free, leading you down the path to high-fat 
temptation by encouraging you to add more flavorful (and higher fat, sodium, 
and calorie) ingredients to your salad in order to make it more palatable 
and satisfying.

Paint With A Broad Palette of Color
The greater the variety of colors in the vegetables in your salad, the 
greater the variety of nutrients. Go for a wide variety of greens (including 
different types of lettuces, spinach, peppers), oranges (carrots), and reds 
(tomatoes and red peppers).

Skip the Meat
Try ordering your salad without meat. Or, if you really want the meat, 
choose to have it grilled (not fried) and consider eating only half of 
what's included with your salad.

Remember: Dynamite Comes In Small Packages
So if you want to avoid exploding your healthy eating plan, say no to those 
little packets of parmesan cheese, croutons, or Chinese noodles. They may 
look innocent (and yummy), but these extras are a serious source of fat, 
calories, and sodium. Ask your server to leave them off of your order—once 
you get them to your table, they're just going to tempt you.

Don't Douse, Dress
Ask if there's a low- or no-fat dressing available, and substitute that for 
the one that comes with the salad you've ordered. Use the smallest amount 
possible to flavor (not drench!) your salad. Some restaurants have plain 
packets of vinegar or lemon juice available; consider sprinkling these on 
your greens instead of dressing.

Inquiring Minds Want To Know...
All of the major fast food restaurants have websites that detail the 
nutritional stats on each of their menu items. Read the available 
nutritional information about various fast food salads and other offerings. 
If you read about the choices in advance, and plan your attack, you might be 
more successful at making healthy choices.