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| Taco Bell - Fast Food & Restaurant Fare - Statistical Data Included Hope S. WarshawTACO BELL IS numero uno when it comes to serving Mexican food to Americans who want it fast. Today more than 7,000 Taco Bell restaurants line the world's highways and byways. The basic ingredients of Mexican cooking--corn, flour, beans, tomatoes, and, of course, chilies--fit in well with current diabetes nutrition recommendations. Unfortunately, lots of fat and salt gets added from the time these foods enter the restaurant's back door to the time they enter your mouth. The usual words of wisdom apply at Taco Bell. Ask questions to learn the contents of what you order (see "What's At Taco Bell?"). Steer clear of hefty portions. At Taco Bell you can be tipped off by words such as "stuft," "double supreme," "bell grande," and "mucho grande." Beware of the common Mexican high-fat toppers of cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. continued below... |
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Last, feel comfortable making special requests. According to the Taco Bell folks, all their food is made to order and special requests are granted.
What's At Taco Bell?
* Burrito: Soft flour tortilla wrapped around the chosen contents with shredded cheddar cheese, special red sauce, and diced onions.
* Chalupa: A flatbread taco that has a soft outer shell with a golden brown layer that is crispy and flaky (translation: deep-fried).
* Enchirito: A flour tortilla wrapped around the chosen contents with your choice of red sauce or green tomatillo sauce and topped with lots of melted cheddar cheese.
* Gordita: A grilled Mexican flatbread taco packed with chosen contents.
* Nachos: 100 percent white corn tortilla chips served with cheese sauce on the side. (Several nacho items have additional ingredients on top of the nachos.)
* Quesadilla: Lightly grilled soft flour tortilla filled with chosen contents.
* Soft Taco: A warm, soft flour tortilla filled with chosen contents, crisp lettuce, and shredded cheddar cheese.
* Taco: A crisp (translation: deep-fried) corn tortilla shell filled with chosen contents, crisp lettuce, and shredded cheddar cheese.
Note: "Supreme" means sour cream and tomatoes added.
On The Plus Side
* Beans--a staple of Mexican cuisine--offer a bonanza of "beanifits." They raise blood sugars slower and not as high as other carbohydrates; provide soluble fiber; contain no fat, saturated fat, or cholesterol; are non-animal protein; and offer a bounty of vitamins and minerals.
* Ordering is a la carte. This can help you order less and eat less.
* You can request that high-fat toppers--cheese, sour cream, and guacamole--be left off or put on the side so you control the amount. (Light sour cream is no longer available.)
* Avocado, though high in fat content, is high in the healthier monounsaturated fat, which can help raise your HDL (good cholesterol). Opt for guacamole over sour cream. Calorie for calorie, it's better for you.
* You can add zip without the calories with hot and spicy sauces, such as salsa, pico de gallo, and red or green sauce.
* No addictive chips and salsa greet you at the table!
On The Minus Side
* Beans, though healthy to start with, are often served refried.
* Deep-fried items are plentiful--tortilla chips, taco shells, fried shells for salads.
* Food is fried in partially hydrogenated soybean oil. Not the healthiest. It contains some trans fats.
* The plentifully used ingredients--cheese and sour cream--add fat, and some of it's saturated.
* Vegetables? You'll only find lettuce, tomatoes, and onions.
* Fruit? Not!
For a sampling of Healthy and Not-so-Healthy Taco Bell menu items, please see page 102. For a comprehensive list of most of Taco Bell's food offerings and nutrition information, go to .com. You can also get a brochure with their nutrition information by calling 1-800-TACOBELL (822-6235). Note: Keep in mind that the nutrition information made available by restaurants is based on usual preparation. On any given day a food preparer might go light or heavy on one or more ingredients. This might alter the nutrition slightly.
general tips for choosing healthier restaurant meals
* For help fitting restaurant meals into your meal plan, see a registered dietitian (RD) with expertise in diabetes. To find a dietitian in your area, visit the American Diabetes Association's Web site at .org and see "Education Programs" under "Outreach and Support" in the "Community and Resources Area."
* To find out how a particular restaurant meal affects your blood sugar, do a blood sugar check two hours after you start the meal. Ideally, your blood sugar shouldn't be higher than 160 to 180 mg/dl (whole blood goals), 170 to 190 mg/dl (plasma goals), or 20 to 40 points higher than your pre-meal blood sugar level. If your after-meal blood sugar levels are consistently high and your HbA1c levels are above 8 percent, talk to your health care provider about changing your diabetes management plan to improve your control.
* Even healthier restaurant choices may be higher in fat, saturated fat, and sodium than desirable. If you choose such a meal, plan to balance out your intake by selecting lower-fat, lower-saturated-fat, and lower-sodium choices for other meals you eat that day.
* The meals listed in this column are moderate in carbohydrate content. This is consistent with recommendations of the American Diabetes Association and other health authorities. If you find these meals make control of your blood sugar more difficult, talk with your dietitian or doctor about adjusting your meal plan, your medications, or both.
Puttin' Healthy Meals Together
Here are three possible meals at Taco Bell. The calories and other nutrients vary to show an example for three calorie ranges.
400 to 500 calories
Based on about 1,200 to 1,500 calories/day. This calorie level might fit the needs of women who want to lose weight and small-stature older adults.
1 Soft Taco (chicken) 1 Tostada Nutrition Facts Starch Exchanges Vegetable Exchanges 1 Medium-Fat Meat Exchanges 2 Fat Exchanges Amount per serving Calories 440 Calories From Fat 170 Total Fat 19 grams Saturated Fat 7 grams Cholesterol 50 milligrams Sodium 1,120 milligrams Total Carbohydrate 46 grams Dietary Fiber 13 grams Sugars 3 grams Protein 23 grams
600 to 700 calories
Based on about 1,600 to 2,000 calories/day. This calorie level might fit the needs of children, active women, and older men.
1 Gordita Nacho Cheese (chicken) 1 SoftTaco (steak) 1 Mexican rice Nutrition Facts Starch Exchanges 4 Vegetable Exchanges 1 Medium-Fat Meat Exchanges 3 Fat Exchanges 2 Amount per serving Calories 670 Calories From Fat 250 Total Fat 29 grams Saturated Fat 9 grams Cholesterol 65 milligrams Sodium 1,930 milligrams Total Carbohydrate 70 grams Dietary Fiber 5 grams Sugars 6 grams Protein 34 grams
800 to 900 calories
Based on about 2,200 to 2,600 calories/day. This calorie level might fit the needs of active teens, large-stature active women, and most adult men.
1 Gordita Supreme (chicken) 1 Fiesta Burrito (steak) 1 Pintos `n' Cheese Nutrition Facts Starch Exchanges 6 Medium-Fat Meat Exchanges 3 Fat Exchanges 3 Amount per serving Calories 850 Calories From Fat 310 Total Fat 33 grams Saturated Fat 13 grams Cholesterol 85 milligrams Sodium 2,190 milligrams Total Carbohydrate 93 grams Dietary Fiber 16 grams Sugars 7 grams Protein 43 grams
Hope S. Warshaw, MMSc, RD, CDE, is a nationally recognized dietitian, diabetes educator, and author. She is the author of Guide To Healthy Restaurant Eating, published by the American Diabetes Association. She is also the author or coauthor of several other books published by the American Diabetes Association--Diabetes Meal Planning Made Easy (2nd edition, 2000), The Complete Guide To Carb Counting (2001), and The Diabetes Food And Nutrition Bible (2001). All books may be ordered by calling 1-800-ADA-ORDER or on the Association's Web site at .org. (Note that you don't type "www" when going to this address.)