Fast Food Restaurants: McDonalds Nutrition Info

 

Fast food restaurants have become a staple of our society. They are a multi-billion dollar industry and there seems to be one on every block. Unfortunately, the food that they serve is usually bad for your health. The nutritional data is pretty grim. Most fast food items are high in fat, calories, and sodium and can lead to health problems such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Keeping track of the nutritional data of the items on the menu can help you avoid these problems.

McDonalds Nutrition Info

McDonalds is the most famous franchise in the world. They have locations in over 100 countries and serve over 58 million customers a day. However, just because something is popular does not mean it is good for you. I have gathered the McDonalds nutrition data to what kind of values it has on the major nutrition categories.

Here are some facts about the McDonald burgers:

Burger with the fewest calories: Hamburger (100g) 250 calories

Burger with the most calories: Angus Bacon & Cheese (291g) 790 calories

Burger with the least fat: Hamburger (100g) 9g fat

Burger with the most fat: Angus Mushroom & Swiss (283g) 40g of fat

Burger with the lowest sodium: Hamburger (100g) 520mg of sodium

Burger with the most sodium: Angus Bacon & Cheese (291g) 2070mg of sodium

Burger with the lowest cholesterol: Hamburger (100g) 25mg of cholesterol

Burger with the highest cholesterol: Double Quarter Pounder With Cheese (279g) 155mg of cholesterol

The recommended daily intake for calories is 2000 for a semi-active person. The fat intake should be no more than 65g, sodium at 2400mg, and cholesterol at 300mg. The Angus Bacon & Cheese burger has the most calories and contains almost a full days worth of sodium. If you add fries to it, you will be over the quota with just one meal. The Angus mushroom & Swiss burger contains 2/3 of a day’s worth of fat all by itself.

How does McDonalds compare with other fast food restaurants? Lets compare the nutrition info of five of the most popular restaurants against McDonalds. We will look at the most famous burger at each of the restaurants.

McDonalds – Big Mac 540 calories - 29g fat - 1040mg sodium - 75mg cholesterol

Burger King – Whopper 670 calories - 40g fat - 980mg sodium - 75mg cholesterol

Sonic - Sonic Burger 560 calories - 26g fat - 760mg sodium - 60mg cholesterol

Wendys – 1/4lb single 470 calories - 21g fat - 880mg sodium - 75mg cholesterol

Jack In The Box – Jumbo Jack 540 calories - 32g fat - 850mg sodium - 45mg cholesterol

Whataburger – Whataburger 620 calories - 30g fat - 1262mg sodium - 65mg cholesterol

The Big Mac ranks in the middle of the pack in calories and fat, but t is very poor in terms of sodium and cholesterol. The Big Mac has almost 50% of a days worth of sodium. Lets take a look at the fries.

McDonalds – Large Fries (154g) 500 calories - 25g fat - 620mg sodium

Burger King - Large Fries 540 calories - 27g fat - 830mg sodium

Sonic -Large Fries (156g) 450 calories - 18g fat - 600mg sodium

Wendys -Large Fries (184g) 540 calories - 25g fat - 460mg sodium

Jack In The Box -Large Fries (179g) 560 calories - 26g fat - 1020mg sodium

Whataburger – Large Fries (170g) 640 calories - 36g fat - 463mg sodium

The large size of fries at most fast food restaurants are fairly close in nutritional value. The largest discrepancy is in the sodium data. McDonalds is in the middle of the pack in just about every category. The scary fact is that every almost container of fries that was examined has more than 1/3 of the fat limit for an entire day. Here is the data for a large chocolate shake.

McDonalds -Lg Chocolate Shake (713g) 1160 calories - 27g fat - 510mg sodium - 100g cholesterol

Burger King -Lg Chocolate Shake 960 calories - 23g fat - 780mg sodium - 75mg cholesterol

Sonic -Lg Chocolate Shake (506g) 810 calories - 34g fat - 540mg sodium - 135mg cholesterol

Wendys - Lg Chocolate Shake (451g) 540 calories - 13g fat - 270g sodium - 40mg cholesterol

Jack In The Box -Lg Chocolate Shake (543g) 1150 calories - 55g fat - 440mg sodium - 185mg cholesterol

Whataburger –Lg Chocolate Shake (985g) 1380 calories - 36g fat - 610mg sodium - 139mg cholesterol

A large chocolate shake is extremely high in calories. Although the sizes vary greatly among fast food restaurants, the calories are high everywhere. Surprisingly, the fat content is about the same as a burger in many cases. When you go out to eat, avoiding a shake is usually a good idea.