It's a lot easier to face the nutritional reality of what you're eating if the facts are presented in a place where they're hard to avoid. That's why we're happy that California has become the first state to require chain restaurants to disclose the calorie counts of almost everything on their menus.
The mandate came from a bill by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Los Angeles, who contends that it will be a valuable weapon in our floundering national war against obesity.
If so, it will be a weapon that will be deployed only at your favorite chains. The measure applies to restaurants with 20 or more eateries in California, a total of about 17,000 locations statewide. Buffet-style restaurants are excluded, on the perhaps optimistic assumption that diners there can control the size of their portions.
The cold, hard nutritional facts of the eateries that fall under the law will be rolled out in two stages.
Beginning Wednesday, the restaurants had to offer brochures on-site that detailed the calories, sodium, saturated fat and carbohydrates of the items on their menus.
In January 2011, the bad news will become more conspicuous. The calorie counts will have to be listed on menus, or menu boards.
It remains to be seen whether being told that the fast-food burger you're about to order has nearly 1,000 calories and several days worth of fat will change our willingness to consume it.
But it seems undeniable that the new requirements will at least reduce our capacity to deny just how fattening many of our favorite foods are. Let's hope that will be a first step toward making healthier choices.
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