245132 Assessing the accuracy of nutrition information on restaurant menus

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Gabrielle Parkinson, MS candidate , School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Brenda Robles, MPH , Los Angeles Department of Public Health, RENEW LA County(Communities Putting Prevention to Work, Los Angeles, CA
Patricia Cummings, MPH , Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Office of Senior Health, Los Angeles, CA
Gloria Kim, MPH , Office of Senior Health, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
Lindsey Burbage, MPH , Los Angeles Department of Public Health, RENEW LA County(Communities Putting Prevention to Work), Los Angeles, CA
Obi Ogamba, REHS , Environmental Health, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Baldwin Park, CA
Kenneth Murray, REHS , Environmental Protection, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Baldwin Park, CA
Margaret Shih, MD, PhD , Department of Public Health, Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA
Tony Kuo, MD, MSHS , County of Los Angeles, Department of Public Health, Office of Senior Health, Los Angeles, CA
Background: Restaurants with 20 or more locations in the U.S. are required by new federal regulations (ACA of 2009) to provide nutrition information for all menu items. These new labeling regulations will require monitoring of information accuracy at eligible restaurant chains locally. This paper describes Los Angeles County Department of Public Health's Preparation and exploratory effort to examine this issue. Methods: As part of a formative, exploratory process, we assessed the labeling accuracy for 2 fast-food and 2 sit-down restaurants in Los Angeles County by comparing the listed nutritional information for each restaurant's most popular menu item with a calculated amount based on inspection of actual food items using a dietary software program. Results: On average, 60% of calculated nutrition components for the popular menu items (e.g. a combination meal) via the software were underreported on the menu listing. One, however, over-reported the values. Conclusion: Although there are several limitations to using nutritional analysis software without actual examinations of recipes and cooking practices, these exploratory findings nevertheless suggest discrepancies in the reproducibility of nutritional information provided on restaurant menus. Additional analysis will be required and is now being planned to see if laboratory verification of menu labeling accuracy can be feasibly integrated for monitoring purposes.

Learning Areas:
Chronic disease management and prevention
Epidemiology
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
Assess the accuracy of nutrition information provided by chain restaurants. Discuss the efficacy of dietary software as a future menu labeling tool.

Keywords: Food and Nutrition, Community Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am studying chronic disease epidemiology, especially as it relates to environmental factors. I also help with senior health projects of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Poster Session - Research & Data Analysis
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