Fear of Frying

Here's something most of us already know: Americans are fat. Nearly 65% of Americans are overweight and 31% are obese, according to the American Obesity Association. About 30% of children are overweight and 15% are obese. Fat is becoming our biggest and most expensive health problem, since obesity commonly leads to heart disease and type II diabetes.

Obesity is a relatively new problem, only becoming an issue in the last 30 years or so. In that time, America has seen a shift to a more sedentary lifestyle, increased portion sizes, and a vast proliferation of fast food restaurants, among other things. There's no doubt that the popularity of fast food's high-fat menus has had at least some part to play in America's weight problem.

In a four-page spread in the June 2004 issue of Redbook, McDonald's is promoting its new "Go Active!" campaign. With columns of text, sidebars, and a picture of a happy woman bounding up stairs, it's one of those ads that tries to look like an article in the magazine, even though Redbook has printed "advertisement" at the top of every page. Using an endorsement from Oprah's personal trainer Bob Greene, the ad wants to help you "get going on an active lifestyle."

Part of that help includes telling you about McDonald's "wholesome menu choices." First, you have the Go Active! Happy Meal, an adult version of the child's Happy Meal that comes with a salad, a beverage, and a pedometer. Then you have a list of "calorie-cutting tips," which promotes some of McDonald's menu choices. This includes the salads again, the Chicken McGrill without the mayo (the ad explains that holding the mayo will save you 100 calories and 11 grams of fat), and the 6-piece Chicken McNuggets with dipping sauce and bottled water, for a "340-calorie meal."

Adding to all the abundant healthfulness is the active part of the plan: Greene is promoting the 10,000-steps-a-day challenge, which urges people to move more by doing things like walking the dog, visiting local farmer's markets, and shopping -- "now an official sport." And hey, you can even use your "Step With It! Pedometer" to track your progress. The ad assures us that walking and picking the right menu choices at McDonald's will make us feel so good, we "just might make it to the moon and back."

Could it be that the fast food giant now cares about America's health?

Living off the Fat of the Land

Most fast food restaurants have started offering healthier menu choices. But the reason for that may have more to do with competition than anything else.

"Offering healthy choices is more of a marketing and competition strategy," says analyst Wally Butkus of Restaurant Research. "One chain will put something out and the rest of them will follow suit. They don't want to be the one left holding the bag."

Wendy's began offering salads two and a half years ago to enormous success. Soon after, most fast food restaurants began offering salads too. Likewise, Burger King took advantage of the No Carbs fad by offering a burger wrapped in lettuce, something that other fast food restaurants have since copied.

But the idea of fast food as health food probably comes from Subway's Jared Diet. Jared, who lost hundreds of pounds by walking and eating Subway sandwiches -- and who was featured prominently in Subway's advertising campaign -- made Subway the healthy fast-food alternative for many.

McDonald's recent attempt to capture the weight-loss market includes promoting certain menu options and launching the Go Active! Happy Meal in May, shortly after CEO Jim Cantalupo died of a heart attack.

The new menu choices seem to be paying off, according to Butkus.

"McDonald's has done exceptionally well in the last six to eight months in taking the market share back," he says. "Its profit margin has increased 15%, which is a huge increase. Usually, a 2%-3% increase is considered large in this industry. It's definitely working to give people the option of healthier choices, financially speaking."