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Study shows little difference between calories consumed at Subway and McDonald's

May 9, 2013

New research from UCLA, published in the May 6 Journal of Adolescent Health, finds that younger consumers who purchase meals from Subway consumed nearly as many calories as those who purchase meals from McDonald's.

The researchers claim these meals are likely contributors to obesity and overeating habits.

"Every day, millions of people eat at McDonald's and Subway, the two largest fast food chains in the world," said Dr. Lenard Lesser, who led the research while a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar in the department of family medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. "With childhood obesity at record levels, we need to know the health impact of kids' choices at restaurants."

The researchers studied 97 consumers ages 12 to 21 who purchased meals at both chains at a shopping mall in Carson, Calif. Participants visited each restaurant on different weekdays between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., and paid for the meals with their own money. Researchers used cash register receipts to record what each customer ate and estimated calorie counts from information on the chains' websites.

Participants bought meals containing an average of 1,038 calories at McDonald's and an average of 955 calories at Subway.

"We found that there was no statistically significant difference between the two restaurants, and that participants ate too many calories at both," said Lesser, who is now a researcher at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute.

The Institute of Medicine recommends that school lunches not exceed 850 calories. An adolescent should consume an average of about 2,400 calories in a day.

Other findings from the study include:

• The sandwiches purchased by participants contained an average of 784 calories at Subway versus 572 calories at McDonald's;
• Participants purchased sugary drinks averaging 61 calories at Subway, and 151 calories at McDonald's;
• Side items such as french fries and potato chips added an average of 35 calories at Subway compared with 201 calories at McDonald's;
• Participants consumed 102 grams of carbohydrates at Subway; 128 grams at McDonald's;
• The meals contained an average of 36 grams of sugar at Subway; 54 grams at McDonald's;
• Meals contained an average of 41 grams of protein at subway; 32 grams at McDonald's; and
• Sodium intake averaged 2,149 mg at Subway; 1,829 mg at McDonald's. Researchers suggest that the higher sodium content at Subway likely comes from processed meats.

The researchers did note some weaknesses in their study. Namely, they didn't track participants' meals for the rest of the day, so they don't know if excess calories were balanced with healthier meals.

Also, participants were from a single suburb of Los Angeles and most were of Asian descent or of mixed race and ethnicity, so their purchase patterns may not be applicable to other populations.

Lesser recommends that McDonald's customers eliminate sugary drinks and french fries from their meals. "And if you go to Subway, opt for smaller subs, and ask for less meat and double the amount of veggies," he said.

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