The CNN website has a really interesting application that is designed to help make us more aware of what we're eating. Granted, after staring at labels, numbers and other data all day (as I have been known to do when writing some pieces) has given me a good idea of what I'm eating most of the time, but seeing the hard numbers is much more of a wake-up call than approximating them - and I was more surprised than I would have thought.
Using the program, you can click and drag sample foods for each meal onto your plate and get an idea of what you're currently eating - as well as what you might want to cut back on. A stack of three pancakes with butter and maple syrup? 665 calories. Chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy and a buttered roll? 425 calories, plus another 120 for soda or wine.
The program doesn't offer too many food options and though you might not be eating pancakes for breakfast and sweet-and-sour pork for dinner each day, that doesn't make it any less interesting to see what it is you could be eating. The program gives the nutritional breakdown (calories, fat, sodium, carbs and fiber) for the meal selections, too.
What are you eating?
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