Now this is just stupid. McDonald's and Weight Watchers

[frapjap]

http://www.chicagobusiness.com...37312

McDonald's, Weight Watchers strike deal to promote fast food mealsMarch 03, 2010 (AP) — Meals approved by Weight Watchers are going on sale at McDonald's in New Zealand, the companies said Wednesday, in a deal trumpeted as an enjoyable way to lose weight but that nutritionists criticize as a marketing ploy that doesn't promote healthy eating.

As part of the deal — which the company says is the first of its kind in the world — McDonald's Corp. will use the Weight Watchers logo on its menu boards and Weight Watchers will promote McDonald's to dieters.

Several items on the fast food giant's menu — the Filet-O-Fish, Chicken McNuggets and Sweet Chilli Seared Chicken Wrap — have been approved for the Weight Watchers program. Each meal is worth 6.5 points on the program, which assigns points to food items and allows dieters to consume 18 to 40 points each day to achieve their goal weight.

Chris Stirk, Weight Watchers director of business in Australia and New Zealand, said the partnership between the two companies reflects "part of our philosophy that you can enjoy life ... while still achieving your weight loss goals."

But nutritionists and obesity experts said the menu items are merely a marketing ploy to lure customers into the restaurant.

"It's all about sales really," Australian Obesity Policy Coalition senior adviser Jane Martin said.

"It implies this food is healthy ... when often it is high in fat and salt. Chicken McNuggets are Chicken McNuggets whether its got Weight Watchers on it or not," she told The Associated Press.

Mark Hawthorne, chief executive officer of McDonald's New Zealand, said the country was the only one to have a McDonald's that offered Weight Watchers meals. McDonald's New Zealand has "no knowledge of any plans to roll this out in other countries," spokeswoman Kylie Taylor said.

The fast-food chain, widely criticized for selling a high-calorie, high-fat menu that includes super-size meals, was "making every best effort to generate a change in behavior, to create an awareness in consumers about making healthy choices," Hawthorne said.

McDonalds has made changes to its menu, adding healthier products such as entree-sized salads, fruit and grilled chicken sandwiches.

Stirk of Weight Watchers said the weight-loss company would not have partnered with the fast-food chain unless it was committed to change.

I can understand both sides of the argument, but c'mon. ::insert simley that blows its own brains out::

[AppleBonker]

I can understand both sides of the argument, but c'mon. ::insert simley that blows its own brains out::

Meh, I'm strangely ok with it. I'm sure a lot of people on weight watchers still eat at McD's fairly often, so this might help determine the better choices from the menu. However, I like eating healthy, so WW endorsement or not I will not be in a McDonalds anytime soon.

[numbnuts240]

::insert simley that blows its own brains out::

i don't eat at mcdonalds, so whatever.

[dre1507]

Lol about the salad bit. If you are gonna eat the salad, then you'd have to order it with just the lettuce. Please don't listen to the "added heathly alternatives to their menu". That's a load of diarrhea.

[RobPaulson]

i dont understand people who go to mcD's for a salad...

why in gods name would u go to a fast food joint for salad? its like an oxy moron... go to your local deli, spend an extra $1, and get a BOSS ARSE SALAD. FK McD's 'health' menu... so dumb...

[BusyBadger]

i dont understand people who go to mcD's for a salad...

why in gods name would u go to a fast food joint for salad? its like an oxy moron... go to your local deli, spend an extra $1, and get a BOSS ARSE SALAD. FK McD's 'health' menu... so dumb...

While I don't understand going to McD's for a salad there are a couple of things that you may not have considered...

The buyers proximity to McD's - it may be the only real option for a quick meal and while the consumer may not have considered McD's before the "healthier" options now it is a viable option

Second, mealtimes aren't always solely about the food, many times they're a social function as well. Suppose a group of people is going to McD's but the consumer wouldn't normally eat there, the healthier options allow the consumer to be part of the group and make responsible eating decisions.

[lino]

I think it'd progress on some level. A lot of people like the Weight Watchers point system (controlled-portions) and it may be beneficial for them. I don't eat there so it has no direct effect on me.

[RCA]

Weight Watchers selling out... NICE!

Were all damned. McD's with all their money will take over everything and all that will be left to eat will be McCrap

[C-Kwik]

I think you guys need to understand how weight watchers works before criticizing. Its a points based system. Points for food are calculated primarily on calories, fat and fiber. They provide a book af a lot of products whoe points values are well defined and a separate book that lists foods from major fast foods. Anything not on the list cab be roughly calculated using nutritional data.

That said, weight watcher's set-up is such that people can eat normal foods (widely available) and still lose weight. The key is that the program provides a simple way of calculating how healthy or bad food is and its relation to portion. Basically, a number of points are assigned to them based on their weight which decreases as you lose weight. It makes it easy to determine what and how much you can eat.

As for partnering with McDonalds, it could actually be a very good thing. For one, Weight Watchers gets McDonalds to create some menu options that are more helpful to dieters. And secondly, McDonalds gets consumers that might avoid McDonalds due to a lack of healthy choices. McDonalds only really had side salads whereas Burger King, and Jack in the Box had entree sized salads all along. Given the availability and infiltration of McDonalds throughout the US, one of the best ways to start a movement in the fast food industry to providing healthy choices is to get the biggest to follow suit. There is a reason documentaries that go after the fast food industry tend to target McDonalds. Its win-win as far as I can tell.

[cellardoorv]

I'm alright with it as well. On Weight Watchers, you really CAN eat anything you want, as long as you only have your set amount of points per day. Say you start with 25 points for a day. You CAN eat that BigMac... just realize that it costs you like.. 15 points or whatever it is. Probably even more than that. So you have 10 points for the rest of your day, choose wisely. It's all about choices, sacrifices, etc. My old boss was on it for a bit. Lost her goal weight, didn't feel deprived at all, and is still successful with it.

[nissangirl74]

I personally think it's a bad idea. it invites temptation. You might go there with the good intentions of just having a salad. However, the smell of French Fries and fried apple pies might be too much for a struggling dieter to resist.

[C-Kwik]

I personally think it's a bad idea. it invites temptation. You might go there with the good intentions of just having a salad. However, the smell of French Fries and fried apple pies might be too much for a struggling dieter to resist.

Weight Watchers is nothing more than a tool for dieters. No part of the tool explicitly tries to get people to avoid fast food. The entire program is based around the ability to try and eat at the same places everyone else does. Like any other diet though, its ultimately up to the will of the dieter to stick with it. Temptation is everywhere. You can go to the grocery store and run into much more temptation than at fast food. Part of the program is learning to deal with and manage temptation. Hell, it even allows you to splurge a little every so often.

There are a handful of restaurants I've been to that had Weight Watchers points listed next to select items on the menu. Its a nice reminder to see it and is very convenient as one won't have to calculate the points or try and find it in their book of points (its not always convenient carrying the book around and can be a bit embarrassing).

[Mr1der]

eh..if stupid people think it's healthy...whatever.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I personally think it's a bad idea. it invites temptation. You might go there with the good intentions of just having a salad. However, the smell of French Fries and fried apple pies might be too much for a struggling dieter to resist.

Lack of willpower is not Weight Watchers' fault, or McDonalds' fault, it's the customer's fault. It seems like this is a helpful thing for people who want to take advantage of it. For those with no self control, it doesn't really make a difference anyway. I doubt that temptation is any stronger at McDonalds than it is anywhere else.

[PoorManQ45]

What's funny is the difference in drink sizes at McDonald's in America vs Europe.

Our Small is their Large!

[RCA]

C-Kwik having McDonalds on weight watchers might work fine with their point system, but what about when you choose a Big Mac and for the rest of your day you can only drink water and have 2 crackers. You full fill your caloric requirements but you only ate once in a day, and that isn't healthy at all. I'm all for keeping options etc, but in this case, I am all for WW to ban all fast foods. Avoiding fast food at all costs is priority number one if your dieting. There is nothing good about it.

[C-Kwik]

C-Kwik having McDonalds on weight watchers might work fine with their point system, but what about when you choose a Big Mac and for the rest of your day you can only drink water and have 2 crackers. You full fill your caloric requirements but you only ate once in a day, and that isn't healthy at all. I'm all for keeping options etc, but in this case, I am all for WW to ban all fast foods. Avoiding fast food at all costs is priority number one if your dieting. There is nothing good about it.

You don't have to eat an entire Big Mac. A Big Mac is actually fairly low in points compared to other burgers (its small) at 13 points. Take out the sauce (yeah I know, what's the point) and it gets down to 11 points. While they don't list this specifically, a slice of cheese is usually worth about 2 points. Take that out too and now you have a 9 point burger. Or, another option is you could always just eat half. Hell, if you have a friend or significant other also on the program or supportive of it, they might split a burger and a salad with you. Gives you the ability to eat something tastier and still get full enough without having to resort to only a salad. Its a scalable point system.

For me, and a lot of people, avoiding fast food "at all costs" is not really practical. It can be done, but consider how many people would drop the program or fail at it as a result. WW was designed from the ground up to help people make good decisions without having to go out of one's way to do it. Aside from an issue with repetition, one could eat at fast food all the time and still be successful at a WW diet. And it doesn't necessarily require one to limit themselves to salads either. Cooking one's own meals tends to open up a lot of tasty options that are low in points, so it naturally has a tendency to draw people towards it, but you don't have to drop fast food altogether to be able to lose weight.

Just so you know, my point allottment was 25 per day with a 10 point bonus per week that could be used however I wanted. Lighter people would have less points to work with though, but people on the program tend to start out with enough to be ushed but not horribly uncomfortable. As one loses wiehgt the number of points diminishes but by that time many good habits are already formed and a lot of bad habits disappear.