Healthy Eating:Dining Out

Is Your Salad Making You Fat?


“I’m having a salad.” It’s amazing how these four simple words can make you feel so virtuous. But whether you choose a vinaigrette that’s loaded with oil or add an overly generous sprinkling of honey-toasted nuts, it’s easy to pile on extra fat and calories without realizing it, says Joan Salge Blake, RD, clinical assistant professor at Boston University and author of Nutrition and You.

In fact, a restaurant salad with dressing can have as many as 1,000 calories. With Blake’s help, we’ve remade a few popular salads, which also happen to be favorites of three Health editors. Find out how to lighten up your greens too.

By Colleen Rush


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Last Updated: July 2, 2008
Filed Under: Dining Out
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Comments (5)

The following content represents the opinions of Health.com users. It is not editorially reviewed for medical or factual accuracy. It does not constitute medical advice. See your doctor for medical advice.
  • Wally caviness

    Thanks for the tips !!!

  • PJ

    In response to “Is your salad making you fat?”
    If you notice, most of the salad dressing on a salad
    eaten in a restuarant goes to the bottom and you don’t eat it anyway. Fats are not our worst enemy in any case. Nutrient-deficient white breads,hamburger buns, crutons,crackers, sodas with high fructose corn syrup and margerine are the things we should be most concerned about.

  • jenny

    You might not eat the dressing in the bottom of the bowl, but there are a few people like me who did their whole grain roll into it instead of butter. I have to pick light dressings!

  • Joy

    I read someplace that restaurants soak their lettuce in potato water to keep it crisp. Do you know if this is true and if so, how many calories would that add?

  • edith

    i want to know if a salad with ranch
    does that makes u get weight

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