Hello All:

I know many of you take great pleasure in eating out and even more pleasure in telling me how well you eat when you eat out. It’s not that I don’t believe you but…

According to a study done by members of the USDA Economic Research Service, foods people order/purchase often have more calories, fat, and saturated fat than their homemade counter parts! On average, for every meal or snack not prepared in the home, an additional 134 calories is added to one’s total daily caloric intake.

The increase in total daily calories varies by meal.

For example, on average, eating breakfast away from home only adds 74 calories to your daily total.

Hungry for a quick snack? Add 100.

Dinner out? Take your wallet and loosen your belt. That’s an additional 144 calories.

Not brown bagging it? You better. Having lunch out adds 158 calories to your day. That’s right folks! Remember that tuna sandwich with easy mayo on whole wheat you ordered at Gelson’s? You could have made the same thing at home and saved almost 160 calories as well as the seven bucks you left at the deli counter!

I know that these totals might not sound like a of calories per meal; but be careful. All else being equal, having ONE additional meal away from home each week, will add TWO pounds to your body weight in just one year.

So the next time you grab your keys to go for a quick bite, remember you’ll have to go for a long run to work off what you’re about to eat.