AppId is over the quota
Health magazine rates the top 10 healthiest fast food restaurants in America based on their efforts to provide nutritious fare.
Who hasn’t unwrapped a sandwich while driving down the highway or pulled a hard U-turn into a fast-food joint on the way home from a late meeting or soccer game? We practically live in our cars, so we need quick food, and please, we’d like it to be healthy. Well, guess what: We surveyed the nation’s 100 largest fast-food chains, as defined by the number of locations, and found many are creating menus that look more and more like what we’d cook ourselves (if we had the time)—from nutritious soups and healthy salads to fresh whole grains and sensible desserts. Even better: They’re offering good-news Mexican, Asian, and Mediterranean fare.
Using criteria that was created with the help of our expert panel, we scored the chains on such factors as the use of healthy fats and preparations, healthy sodium counts in entrees, availability of nutritional information, and the use of organic produce to determine the 10 highest-ranking restaurants.
One big surprise: A traditional fast-food chain, McDonald’s, cracked our top 10. Sure, it’s the home of the Big Mac, but did you know it also serves a mean yogurt-and-granola parfait? Here, the standouts that are making grabbed food healthy food.
#1 Panera Bread
Over 1,230 locations nationwide (and in Canada)
This bakery-cafe-based eatery wowed our judges with a comprehensive menu of healthy choices for every meal. “Variety makes it easy for everyone to choose healthy,” praises registered dietitian and panelist Marisa Moore. What does that mean for you? For starters, you can pick from two whole-grain breads for your sandwich and have an apple with it instead of chips (though the chips are fine, too—they can be baked!). Half-size soups, salads, and sandwiches make it a cinch to control portion size. Also, most of the chicken is antibiotic- and hormone-free, a rarity for large chains.
Panera also won top honors for kid fare, dishing out RD-approved crowd-pleasers like squeezable organic yogurt, PB&J (with all-natural peanut butter), and grilled organic cheese on white whole-grain bread.
We love: Delicious, nutrient-packed combos like a half–Turkey Artichoke on focaccia bread with a bowl of black bean or garden vegetable soup.
Danger zone: Sticky buns and cheese danishes are on display at the counter.
View this article as a gallery.
SweepstakesHealth NewsettersSubscribeHealthy & HappyNews & ViewsFamilyHome and TravelMind and BodyMoneySex and RelationshipsDiet & FitnessFitness • Cardio • Strength • YogaWeight Loss • Diets • Dieting TipsFood & RecipesEating • Cooking • Nutrition • Restaurants and Fast FoodsRecipesBeauty & StyleBeauty • Skincare • Hair • Makeup • StyleCelebrity • Celebrity Tips • Celebrity HealthHealth A-ZAlzheimer's DiseaseAsthmaBipolar DisorderBirth ControlBreast CancerChildhood VaccinesCholesterolChronic PainCold, Flu, and SinusCOPDCrohn's DiseaseDepressionDiabetes (Type 2)FibromyalgiaGERDHeadaches & MigrainesIncontinenceMenopauseOsteoarthritisOsteoporosisRheumatoid ArthritisSexual HealthSleep DisordersUlcerative ColitisMore ConditionsMagazineCurrent IssueSubscribeTablet EditionArchiveGive a Gift SubscriptionCustomer ServiceMedia KitHealthy Skin MakeoverHome >> Food & Recipes >> Eating >> Cooking >> Must-Have Tools for a CarbLovers KitchenCarbLovers DietEat healthy and lose weight on The CarbLovers Diet. Use Resistant Starch to stay full and burn fat for a healthy lifestyle.Must-Have Tools for a CarbLovers Kitchen Comments: Add | Read 
Credit: Getty Images
1 of 13
A skinnier kitchen 
Free Food & Nutrition Email Newsletter
10 Most Depressing States in the U.S.2
26 Quick and Tasty Zucchini Recipes3
12 Secrets to Better Orgasms4
Best Superfoods for Weight Loss5
27 Mistakes Healthy People Make6
25 Diet-Busting Foods You Should Never Eat > Take Health magazine with you, try 2 FREE PREVIEW issues Add your commentThe rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment. If you see inappropriate language, e-mail us. An asterisk * indicates a required field.
Credit: Joseph DeLeo
Credit: "Two-Potato Salad With Crème Fraîche" "http://recipes.health.com/recipes/453969-two-potato-salad-with-crme-frache"
