Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

Abstract
In an ideal scenario, people would pack a healthful lunch at home and bring it with them each
day to their various places of school or business to ensure a calorie controlled portion of food
that contributes to their daily nutrient needs. In actuality, few people plan ahead for meals eaten
away from home, and in turn rely on local fast-food vendors to meet their lunch-time needs.
Unfortunately most fast-food lunch options are too high in calories. Overuse of fast-food as a
lunch-time meal resource is contributing to the fact that one third of all American are clinically
described as being overweight, and another one third as obese (CDC 2014).
Hypothesis
I hypothesized that the total calorie content of at least 2/3 of popular, American fast-food,
restaurant lunches were above a reasonable threshold of 600 calories and therefor, may
contribute to the current overweight and obesity epidemic. The results of this study do indicate
that 2/3 of the fast-food, lunch-time meals options sampled contained more calories than should
be consumed in a single meal, with consideration for healthy weight management, and a possible
correlation has been found.
Population
The population sampled was popular, American fast-food chain restaurants that specialize in
lunch-time meals. The results of this study indicate that over two thirds of the fast-food, lunchtime meals options sampled contained more calories than should be consumed in a single meal,
with consideration for healthy weight management.

Introduction
In an ideal scenario, people would pack a healthful lunch at home and bring it with them each
day to their various places of school or business to ensure a calorie controlled portion of food
that meets at least 20% of their daily nutrient needs. The calorie needs of the average adolescent
or adult are about 2000 calories per day, as indicated by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans,
2010 as set by the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA 2010). That calorie allowance
can be divided among the daily meals as follows; Breakfast: 400-500 calories, Morning snack:
100-200 calories, Lunch: 500-600 calories, Afternoon snack: 100-200 calories and Dinner: 600700 calories. Therefore, a healthy amount of calories to be eaten by adolescent and adult males
and females, during the lunch-time meal is about 500-600 calories.
Few people plan ahead for meals eaten away from home, and in turn rely on local fast-food
vendors to meet their lunch-time needs. Unfortunately most fast-food lunch options are too high
in calories. For the purpose of this study, a meal in excess of 600 total calories will be deemed
outside the healthy range. Overuse of fast-food as a lunch-time meal resource likely contributes
to the fact that one third of all American are clinically described as being overweight, and
another one third as obese (CDC 2014).
Staying within the 2000 per day caloric intake range will help people achieve and/or maintain a
healthy body weight that is consistent with the standards indicated by the Body Mass index scale,
between 19.5 24.5 (BMI) as indicated by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 (USDA
2010). In consideration of these facts, the threshold for caloric content in a healthful lunch will
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Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

be defined as no more than 600 total calories. I hypothesize that the calorie content of popular,
American fast-food chain restaurant lunches is above a reasonable threshold of 600 calories, and
there for contributing to the current overweight and obesity epidemic.
I chose to research caloric intake at lunch-time because as a nutritionist, I believe one of the most
effective ways one can adhere to a healthful diet and maintain an ideal body weight is by
avoiding restaurant foods, except on special occasions. Daily lunch is not a special occasion in
which extra calories are harmless; it is in fact an area where either healthful or unhealthful
behaviors can be set. For example, a single pound of body fat contains roughly 3,500 calories, a
calorie reduction from 800 to 400 each day of the work or school week will result in weight loss
of .57 lbs./week, 2.3 lbs./month or 27.4 lbs./year. If a person were to switch their daily lunch
routine from an 800 calorie fast-food restaurant meal, to a 400 calorie sack lunch of whole
grains, lean meats, fruits and vegetables, they would not only lose weight but may also
drastically increase vitamin, fiber and protein intake.

Data Collection Methodology

The population sampled was popular, American fast-food chain restaurants that specialize in
lunch-time meals. Popular American fast-food chain restaurants is defined as a fast-food service
restaurant having many locations with a presence in multiple states and offering meal options in
a price range that is affordable to most Americans. Specializing in lunch-time meals is defined
as being open and most prosperous at lunch-time, and selling popular lunch-time food selections
including sandwiches and salads.
The data was collected in two sessions, the first on September 22, 2014. The second session was
on October 22, 2014. Data collection was made by gathering pertinent information from the
internet. The 11 restaurants sampled for this study were; Arbys, Burger King, Carls Jr., ChickFil-A, Einstein Bros Bagles, Jimmy Johns, McDonalds, Noodles & Company, Subway,
Quiznos, and Wendys. Restaurants considered for the study but discounted for their a la carte
style menu with no standards meal options were; Chipotle, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Panda
Express, Pizza Hut, Qudoba and Taco Bell.
For each American fast-food restaurant chain sampled, data was collected from their own online
nutrition data bases, which each restaurant chain creates and maintains in-house. It is considered
self-reported data from the vendors. Some such nutrition data was gathered through interactive
nutrition data calculators offered on the vendors website and some data was collected from
downloadable nutrition data sheets offered through the vendors web site. The form of data
collection for each restaurant can be ascertained by reviewing the Data Collection References at
the end of this document.
For each restaurant sampled caloric information was obtained for three items; one sandwich
meal, one salad meal, and one other item meal. These data were gathered and placed in a data
collection chart that included the name of restaurant, and numerical designation for the item, a
description of the item, a qualitative designation of Sandwich, Salad or Other, the quantitative
data as Calories indicating the caloric content of the selection and a classification of In Range of
< 600 calories or Out of Range >601 calories (see table 1.1). If a restaurant offered no salads, a
second sandwich was selected. If a restaurant offered no non-sandwich items, a second sandwich
was selected. If restaurant specialized in non-sandwich items, those were the primary selection
in lieu of sandwich or salad.
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Data selection was randomized to avoid selection bias, in the following ways; First sandwich
selection to be made was selected as second item listed on a list of sandwiches. When a second
or third sandwich was selected from the same restaurant, every other option was selected,
starting with the second item listed. First salad selection to be made was selected as second item
listed on a list of salads. When a second or third salad was selected from the same restaurant,
every other option was selected, starting with the second item listed. First other selection to be
made was selected as second item listed on a list of non-sandwich, non-salad items. When a
second or third salad was selected from the same restaurant, every other option was selected,
starting with the second item listed.
Some adjustments were made to the restaurant items as follows; If a restaurant meal is advertised
by the restaurant to be eaten with a side dish, that side dish was included in the calorie count and
noted in the menu item description in the data collection table. If side item included was French
fries, the medium size was selected. If the side item was soup, the small size of the second soup
listed was selected. If side item was a bag of chips, the second bag of chips listed was selected.
All salad selections include a salad dressing. When caloric content did not include a dressing
selection, the dressing default selection made was ranch, as provided by that restaurant. Salad
dressing inclusion is noted on the data collection table 1.1. Although many fast-food lunch-time
choices are advertised to include beverages, no beverages are included in this study because the
beverage selection made by restaurant patron may or may not have calories. Assumption will not
be made about beverage preferences.

Data Analysis
Table 1.1
Sample of Lunch-Time Meals
Restaurant-Name of

Category

Calories

< 600

> 601

Ar-a

Roast Beef Sand, Mid + fries

Sandwich

1000

Ar-b

Chopped Farmhouse Salad w/ Turkey + ranch dressing

Salad

540

Ar-c

Chicken, Bacon, Swiss, crispy sandwich + fries

Other

1040

1070

Arby's
x
x

Burger King
Bk-a

Whopper Sandwich w/ Cheese, meal

Sandwich

Bk-b

Chicken Caesa Salad w/ TENDERCRISP w/dressing

Salad

650

Bk-c

Chicken Strip, 3 pc. Meal

Other

680

Carl's Jr.
Cj-a

The 1/3 lb. Texas BBG THICKBURGER + fries

Sandwich

Cj-b

Original Grilled Chicken Salad + dressing

Salad

1490
500

Cj-c

4-Piece Chicken Stars + fries

Other

600

Chick Fillet
Ch-a

Delux Chicken Sandwich + Med Fries

Sandwich

900

Ch-b

Cobb Salad w/ lime ranch dressing

Salad

740

Ch-c

Grilled Chicken Cool Wrap w/ lime ranch dressing

other

650

Einstein Bros Bagles

Eb-a

Tastey Turkey Bagel Sandwich

Sandwich

540

Eb-b

Strawberry Chicken Salad w/dressing

Salad

330

Eb-c

Italian Chicken Paninis

Sandwich

840

Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

Jimmy John's
Jj-a

Big John, 8" Sandwich + chips

Sandwich

658

Jj-b

Turkey Tom, 8" Sandwich + chips

Sandwich

628

Jj-c

Vegetarian Sandwich, 8" + chips

Sandwich

808

860

Mc Donald's
Mc-a
Mcb

Quarter Pounder w/ cheese, value meal

Sandwich

Premium Bacon Ranch Salad w/ Crispy Chicken

Salad

520

Mc-c

Premium McWrap Southwest Chicken (Crispy)value meal

Other

1010

x
x

Noodles & CO
Nc-a

Japanese Pan Noodles

Other

620

Nc-b

Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad w Dressing

Salad

550

Nc-c

Pesto Caratappia

Other

750

Sw-a

6" Oven roasted Chicken Breast + chips

Sandwich

500

Sw-b

Double Chicken Salad + dressing

Salad

410

Sw-c

Flattizza, Pepperoni Flatbread Pizza

Other

500

x
x
x

Subway

Quizno's
Qz-a

Pesto Turkey Chiabata + sm soup

Sandwich

715

Qz-b

Apple Harvest Chicken Salad, lg

Salad

640

Qz-c

Black Angus Steak Sub + sm soup

Sandwich

745

Sandwich

990

Salad

580

Wendy's
Wda
Dave's Hot N' Juicy 1/4 lb. single meal
Wdb
BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad W/ dressing
Wdc
Crispy Chicken Caesar Wrap, meal

Other

820
Totals

x
11

22

Relative Frequency Table

The relative frequency table displays the distribution of qualitative data listing the distinct values
and their relative frequency. Notice on
table 1.2 the 500-600 calories range has
the highest frequency of 02727 or
27.3&. The second highest frequency
rate is the 600-700 calories range at
.2121 or 21.2 %. Table 1.2
Histogram
The histogram (tables 1.3) displays the
classes of quantitative (number of
calories per meal) data on a horizontal
axis and their relative frequencies on the
vertical axis. The frequency of each
class is represented by a vertical bar
whose height is equal to the relative frequency of that class. Notice for this study the number of
calories per meal, occurring most frequently was the 500-600 range, occurring 9 times. While
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Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

that shows a high frequency of meals considered to be within the set ideal calorie Range of 600
calories or less, it is still only 27.3% of total meals sampled.
Table 1.3

Distribution Shapes
An important aspect of the distribution of a qualitative data set is its shape. Notice that both the
histogram and smooth curve in table 1.3 is show that the distribution of calories per meal is bell
shaped. When considering the shape of a distribution, we observe the number of peaks; the data
represented on table 1.3 is unimodal, having one distinct peak in data frequency. This data is also
symmetrical and can be roughly divided into two pieces that are identical. The skewness value
given to this distribution is 0.504119.
Stem-and-Leaf
Diagram
With a stem-and-leaf
diagram, each
observation is a stem,
consisting of all but
the rightmost digit,
and a leaf, the
rightmost digit. In the
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Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

stem-and-leaf diagram for this study (table 1.4) notice that number of calories (in hundreds) is
the stem, where the remaining calories (in tens) of each data sample appears as a leaf. The stem
representing the calories range of 600 has the most leaves because it was the most frequently
occurring variable value.
Table 1.4
Sample Mean
Descriptive measures are applied to sample data involving populations and their relationship to
descriptive measures of sample. The mean of sample data is called a sample mean. This data
sets sample mean is the sum of all variables; 22,054 divvied by the number of observations; 31=
the mean; 711.419.
Mode & Median
In order to determine Mode and
median, data must first be ordered as
depicted in table 1.5. Any value
occurring more than once, or with
the greatest frequency is the mode of
the data set. Notice in this data set,
that the variable 500 calories occurs
three times, this is the mode. The
median is determined by taking the
center-most variable of he ordered
variables. Notice in this data set, that
the median is 658. Table 1.5
Sample Standard Deviation
The sample standard deviation indicates how far, on average, the different observations within
the sample, are from the mean of the sample. The sample deviation is found by finding the
square root of the sum of all variables minus the sample mean, squared and divided by the
number of observations minus 1. The sample standard deviation of this data set is 181.954.
68.26% of all observations lie within one standard deviation of the mean
95.44% of all observation lie within 2 standard deviations of the mean
99.74 % of all observations lie within 3 standard deviations of the mean
Quartiles and Boxplot
Quartiles divined data into four parts; the lowest 25% Q1), the highest 25% (Q3) and 25% falling
on the median (Q2). The quartiles in this data set are as follows; Q1 = 565 calories, Q2 = 658
calories, Q3 = 830 calories. These Quartiles are displayed in the below boxplot, table 1.6.
Table 1.6

Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

Five number Summary and Interquartile Range

A five number summary divides a data set into a range of variables that includes the minimum,
the established quartiles (with Q3 being the median) and the maximum. For this data set, they are
as follows; Minimum: 410 calories, Q1: 550 calories, Median: 658 calories, Q3: 830 Calories and
the maximum: 1070 calories. The range between the smallest variable; 410 calories, and the
largest variable; 1070 calories is 660 calories. The interquartile range (IQR) is the distance
between the first and third quartiles; IQR = Q3 Q1. The IQR for this study is 280.
Outliers
The IQR is used to locate outliers. The lower limit outliers are found when there is a variable
smaller than the Q1 1.5 * IQR, and the upper limit is found when there is a variable larger than
Q3 + 1.5 * IQR. For this data set, the lower limit is 130 calories and the upper limit is 1250
calories. There are no outliers in the 31 variables used for this study, however the original sample
set had 2 variables that were thrown out immediately and those variables, as seen on table 1.1 are
Cj-a: 1490 calories and Eb-b: 330 calories.

Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

Inferential Statistics
Confidence Interval Estimate
The confidence interval (CI) is an estimate of a parameter used to compare data taken from a
sample, to probable data that would represent a population, for whom a complete census is
impossible (table 1.6). For the purpose of this study, I have chosen a 95 % confidence interval.
Mean: The 95% confidence interval for mean was 644.68 778.16. This means that the based
on my sample mean of 711.42 calories, I am 95% confident that the mean to accurately represent
the calorie content of all fast food restaurant meals in the entire population is somewhere
between 644.68 calories and 778.16 calories.
Median: The 95% confidence interval for median is 613.50 768.16. This means that based on
my sample median of 658 calories, I am 95% confident that the median to accurately represent
the calorie content of all fast food restaurant meals in the entire population is somewhere
between 613.50 calories and 768.84 calories.
Standard Deviation: The 95% confidence interval for standard deviation is 145.40 243.21.
This means that based on my sample standard deviation of 181.95 calories, I am 95% confident
that the standard deviation that would accurately represent the average difference in variables of
the calorie content of all fast food restaurant meals in the entire population is somewhere
between 145.4 calories and 243.21 calories.
Table 1.6

Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

Hypothesis Testing
The purpose of a hypothesis test is to decide whether the null hypothesis should be rejected in
favor of the alternative hypothesis. The null hypothesis in this study is Ho: and the
alternative hypothesis is Ha The hypothesis test method used was studentized
comparing critical value and the test statistic (see below). The data do not support the null
hypothesis that the mean calories of meals sampled would be equal to 600, and will therefore be
rejected.

The P-value of the data used in this study is 0.005 compared to a significance level of 0.10
supports the conclusion to reject the null hypothesis.

Conclusion
In an ideal scenario, people would pack a healthful lunch at home and bring it with them each
day to their various places of school or business to ensure a calorie controlled portion of food
that meets their a portion of their daily nutrient needs. In actuality, few people plan ahead for
meals eaten away from home, and in turn rely on local fast-food vendors to meet their lunch-time
needs. Unfortunately most fast-food lunch options are too high in calories. Overuse of fast-food
as a lunch-time meal resource may be contributing to the fact that one third of all American are
clinically described as being overweight, and another one third as obese (CDC 2014).
The USDAs 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans describes a healthy caloric intake as about
2000 per day. They also describe a healthy body weight as being within a BMI score between
19.5-24.5. The CDC states that about 33 % of American fall into the healthy weight category
thereby demonstrating a healthy daily caloric intake. Likewise, the CDC states that about 66% of
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Fast-Food Restaurant Lunches Too High in Calories

By Jennifer Kantola

November 9, 2014

American are either overweight or obese further indicating a higher-than-healthful daily caloric
intake.
Discussion & Interpretation
I hypothesized that the total calorie content of at least 2/3 of popular, American fast-food,
restaurant lunches were above a reasonable threshold of 600 calories and therefor, may
contribute to the current overweight and obesity epidemic. The results of this study do indicate
that 2/3 of the fast-food, lunch-time meals options sampled contained more calories than should
be consumed in a single meal, with consideration for healthy weight management, and a possible
correlation has been found.
Interestingly, the proportions of healthy restaurant meals sampled compared to unhealthy meals
sampled (33 % <600 calories & 66% > 600 calories), exactly mimicked the proportion of the
American public that is of a healthy weight versus and unhealthy weight (33 % have a BMI <
24.5 & 66% have a BMI of >25). Clearly, avoiding fast-food restaurant meals for lunch would be
a good idea for people who are interested in losing weight and improving health.
References
CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overweight and Obesity. Cdc.gov. Updated
2014. Accessed 29 Oct 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html
USDA. United States Department of Agriculture. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010.
usda.gov. Updated 2014. Accessed 29 Oct 2014.
http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/dietaryguidelines.
Arbys. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014. http://arbys.com/our-menu
Burger King. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Sept 2014.
http://www.bk.com/menu
Carls Jr. Nutrition Facts. 2014. Accessed 22 Sept 2014.
http://www.carlsjr.com/menu/nutritional_calculator_landing
Chick-fil-A. . Interactive Nutrition Calculator. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014. http://www.chickfil-a.com/Food/Menu
Einstein Bros Bagels. Interactive Nutrition Calculator. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014.
http://www.einsteinbros.com/menu/6/anytime-creations
Jimmy Johns. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct
2014.https://www.jimmyjohns.com/menu/#/
McDonalds. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Sept 2014.
http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html

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Noodles & Company. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014.
http://www.noodles.com/nutrition/
Quiznos. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014.
http://www.quiznos.com/Menu/restaurant-menu.aspx
Subway. Nutrition, Full Menu, PDF. 2014. Accessed 22 Oct 2014.
http://www.subway.com/menu/default.aspx
Wendys.Nutrition Facts. 2014. Accessed 22 Sept 2014. https://www.wendys.com/enus/nutrition-info

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