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May 25, 2011

AUSTRALIA: Full-fat is fast food of choice

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SYDNEY, NSW / The Sydney Morning Herald / Life & Style / Wellbeing / May 25, 2011

MOST customers choose full-fat items when buying fast food and ignore the healthier options, a survey reveals.

The survey showed less than 3 per cent of customers who ordered a meal at Subway or McDonald's bought food promoted as a healthy choice.

Griffith University researcher Louise Atkinson said older women in groups were more likely to choose the healthier option. Photo courtesy: TopnewsArabEmirates

''[Healthy] purchasers were 14 years older [on average than diners consuming full-fat meals]; 80 per cent of them were female; and they were more likely to be dining with other people,'' she said.

Ms Atkinson said the findings were not surprising. ''A lot of people don't tend to go to fast-food outlets to choose a healthy option,'' she admitted. ''[However] it is concerning to realise they are offering it, but [so] few people are choosing it.''

A McDonald's spokeswoman said the company was pleased with its range of healthy options and would continue to expand it.

The study included 26 Subway and McDonald's outlets in Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

Copyright © 2011 Fairfax Media