So, if your only option is to eat at the traditional fast food restaurants, a great article at Real Simple.com offers some tips. Highlights:

* At Burger King, order a kids-sized burger for fewer calories, or get the Grilled Chicken Sandwich and ask them to double the lettuce and tomatoes for more veggies.

*Get the Cobb Salad with Grilled Chicken balsamic vineagrette dressing at McDonald’s.

* Order food “Fresco” Style when eating at Taco Bell.
Check out the article for more suggestions.

The healthy eating movement is now mainstream with Disney making changes in its food licensing and amusement park menus. Disney is also ending its 10-year movie marketing deal with McDonald’s, reportedly because Disney wants to distance itself from unhealthy fast food. Bloomberg.com reported on the poor nutrition at Disney parks today – worse than Mc Donald’s! In licensing arrangements and in its parks, Disney has specific guidelines that it will be following, including: a cap on calories, total fat below 30-35 percent of calories, saturated fat below 10 percent of calories, and added sugar below 10-25 percent of calories. To read more, check out the article on Bloomberg and on QSR magazine.

I was fortunate enough to meet Walter Robb, Co-President of Whole Foods Market, at a Stanford Club of Marin event where he spoke about the organics movement, his company, his inspiration, and the nation’s health.

Walter said “I’ve never seen a time when the conversation about food has been more robust and dynamic”, validating that this is the time to start Feel Good Fast Food restaurants.

It was wonderful to hear Rob speak about his inspiration in starting the natural food stores that ultimately became part of Whole Foods. He said that E.F. Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful and Francis Moore Lappe’s Diet for a Small Planet inspired him. I am similarly inspired by those books, as well as the more recent Grub by Anna Lappe and Bryant Terry and The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan.

Walter also spoke about the opportunity to impact health in America. 15.3% of the U.S. GDP is spent on healthcare, and only 5% of that is focused on preventative medicine. He mentioned the People’s Grocery in Oakland, that’s mission is to change the way the food system works. Their website says that “The number one cause of death in West Oakland is not violence, but heart disease.”