For dieters, going out to eat might seem like a risky idea-after all, restaurant menus seem to be filled with unhealthy items that might be too hard to resist. But a new study reveals that eating out doesn't have to ruin your diet.
The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that your dining choices-not simply your decision to eat out-affect your waistline.
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"A lot of people have tried to understand why the obesity epidemic has come up, and some people hypothesize that eating out more might have something to do with it," said Dr. Virginia Chang, senior author of the study.
"Our findings suggest that eating out per se is not necessarily bad." With more than two-thirds of American adults categorized as overweight, Chang and her team looked for an explanation. They found that people who live in neighborhoods near fast-food restaurants are more likely to be obese than people who live near more full- service restaurants.
While it was unclear whether people at full-service restaurants consume fewer calories than fast-food patrons, it was clear that people living near more full-service restaurants tended to be thinner.
So, if you're going out to eat take a seat at a full-service restaurant. You can find healthier foods-and smaller portions-than the high-calorie, super-sized, fast-food menu items.
Even if you're dieting, you don't have to deprive yourself of the dining-out experience. You just have to eat carefully. You can do so by ordering an appetizer instead of an entree, splitting a dinner with your husband or ordering a full meal but taking half home. Remember, you can enjoy a night out without mining your diet.
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