16 Healthiest Fast Food Menu Items and Restaurants: Should You Invest Healthful?

If you were wondering if fast-food restaurants have healthy products, here on the list of 16 healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants you can see which are the healthiest.

Eating healthy is very important, as it will help you increase your productivity and energy, enhance your mood, save money on life insurance, regulate your weight, and most importantly, will make you live a happier and healthier life. However, as we have to move faster, and try to get more things done, healthy food is often sacrificed in exchange for price and accessibility. In this way, according to 2010 statistics compiled by the Center For Science In The Public Interest, approximately 678,000 people died prematurely in the United States due to bad nutrition and unhealthy diets as the primary contributor. At the same time, 442,700 people died from high blood pressure, while for 364,000 people and for 158,400 people, the leading contributors to premature deaths were high body-mass index and high cholesterol levels, respectively, all of which are also caused by a bad diet. 

In the last few years, American’s perception of healthy food has significantly changed. They started eating more home-cooked meals with their family as opposed to dining in restaurants. Also, Americans started paying attention to the nutrition labels which contributed to them starting to eat healthier food. From 1999 to 2012, the percent of eating poor-quality food decreased from 56% to 46%. The healthier turn has been reflected in local restaurants, which were forced to start making healthier products and offer nutrition information about each product.

In 2012, products which were sold by the 16 biggest leading companies for beverages and food had a total of 6.4 trillion fewer calories than they did in 2007, according to a study sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. If we divide this number by each person, every person has consumed 78 less calories on a daily basis. Moreover, the US Department of Agriculture said that between 2005 and 2010, Americans also reduced their consumption of calories from total fat by 3.3%, while intake of saturated fat and cholesterol fell by 5.9% and 7.9%, respectively. On the other hand, the daily consumption of fiber went up by 7.5%.

This is a huge change in the eating habits of Americans, and because of it, fast food restaurants needed to find an alternative to their fast food, high-calorie products. Restaurant chains owned by Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) engaged in a number of measures aimed at making its products healthier. For example, KFC is currently working on reducing the amount of salt in their products. They already succeeded, but continue working to reduce it even more and provide their customers with healthier products. Also, Pizza Hut removed 500,000 pounds of salt from its menu and in 2015 they removed 1.5 million pounds of salt from their core ingredients. Taco Bell also needed to change a lot of things in order to create a healthier menu for its customers, that’s why they reduced the sodium in their food by approximately 15% across their entire menu. In 2015, Yum! Brands had a food safety scandal, so it’s not surprising the company is working hard at providing healthier food to its customers.

People need to learn about nutrition in order to gain self-confidence in their nutrition knowledge. Because they will learn more about nutrition, this will help them to separate healthy from unhealthy food. Moreover, they need to understand how eating healthy can have a positive impact on their body, behavior, and productivity. 

As consumers’ tastes change, restaurants must adjust their menus in order to accommodate them. In turn, this could improve their sales, which is a positive sign for investors. To create the list of the 16 healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants we found which brands have the most sales in the world, then found their healthiest products which contain the least calories and fat. We sorted the list by their fat containment, while those products which had the same fat grams were sorted by their calories.

Check out the list beginning on the next page and after reading through it, be sure to check out the list of the 16 Biggest Fast Food Chains in the US.

16. Burger King – Hamburger

Company: Restaurant Brands International Inc (NYSE:QSR)

Burger King’s Hamburger is the healthiest product on their menu with 240 calories, 8 grams of fat, 0 trans fat, 460 mg sodium and 1 grams of fiber.

15. Jack In The Box – Chicken Teriyaki Bowl

Company: Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)

We are continuing our list of healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants with Chicken Teriyaki Bowl that is one of Jack In The Box’s healthiest products. It contains 690 calories, 6 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 1,700 mg of sodium and 5 grams of fiber.

14. McDonald’s Southwest Salad

Company: McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s southwest salad contains 140 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 150 mg of sodium, and 6 grams of fiber.

13. Dunkin’ Donut – Original Oatmeal

Company: Dunkin Brands Group Inc (NASDAQ:DNKN)

Dunkin’ Donuts’ original oatmeal is their healthiest food item on the menu. If you order it, you should know that you will consume 270 calories, 4 grams of fat, 7 grams of protein, and 54 grams of carbohydrates.

12. Pizza Hut – Fit n’ Delicious Tomato Mushroom and Jalapeno Pizza

Company: Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

One slice of Pizza Hut’s fit n’ delicious tomato mushroom and jalapeno pizza contains 150 calories, 4 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of saturated fat, 6 grams of protein, and 710 mg of sodium.

11. McDonald’s – Premium Caesar

Company: McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

McDonald’s premium caesar salad contains 90 calories, 4 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 150 mg of sodium, and 6 grams of fiber.

10. Taco Bell – Premium Latin Rice

Company: Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

Premium latin rice found its way onto the list of the 16 healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants because it contains 120 calories, 3 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 260 mg of sodium, and 1 gram of fiber.

9. McDonald’s Fruit ‘n’ Yogurt Parfait

Company: McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD)

Next on the list of healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants is the McDonald’s that is offering a fruit ‘n’ yogurt parfait with 150 calories, 2 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 70 mg of sodium, and 1 gram of fiber.

8. WingStreet – All American

Company: Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

With one piece of All American, you will consume 40 calories along with 2.5 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, and 160 mg of sodium.

7. Subway – Veggie Delite Salad

Company: Doctor’s Associates

If you decide to eat at Subway, your healthiest option will be its Veggie Delite Salad because it contains only 60 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, and 75 mg of sodium.

6. Tim Hortons – Blueberry Bagel

Company: Restaurant Brands International Inc (NYSE:QSR)

If you lust for a bagel, Tim Horton’s blueberry is your healthiest option. With this bagel, you will intake 270 calories, 1 gram of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 470 mg of sodium, and 2 grams of fiber.

5. Chipotle Mexican Grill – Soft Corn Tacos

Company: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)

Soft corn tacos also found its place on the list of 16 healthiest fast food menu items and restaurant, thanks to containing 210 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 3 grams of protein, and 30 mg of sodium.

4. Tim Hortons – Hearty Vegetable Soup

Company: Restaurant Brands International Inc (NYSE:QSR)

You already know that hearty vegetable soup is healthy, but do you know its nutrition stats? The Hearty vegetable soup sold by Tim Horton’s contains 80 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 590 mg of sodium, and 2 grams of fiber.

3. Jack In The Box – Chiquita Apple Bites

Company: Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)

Chiquita apple bites are also among the healthiest items on Jack In The Box’s menu and on our list of healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants. They contain only 70 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of saturated fat, 55 mg of sodium, and 2 grams of fiber.

2. Baskin-Robbins – Cake Cone

Company: Dunkin Brands Group Inc (NASDAQ:DNKN)

If you lust for a piece of cake, Baskin-Robbins has made a cake cone just for you. With its 25 calories, 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, and 15 mg of sodium, you can have your cake (cone) and eat it too, without worrying about getting out of shape.

1. KFC – House Side Salad Without Dressing

Company: Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM)

Finally, the healthiest product on the whole list is KFC’s house side salad without dressing. This salad contains only 15 calories, with 0 grams of fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 10 mg of sodium and 1 gram of fiber.

If you were wondering which were the 16 healthiest fast food menu items and restaurants: we hope we managed to show you what to order and how much calories and fat you will intake with each healthy product.

Disclosure: None