LOS ANGELES, April 18 (UPI) -- Public health advocates say even health-conscious Californians can't pick the healthiest items on restaurant menus.
A four-question quiz by the California Center for Public Health Advocacy stumped 68 percent of the more than 500 Californians quizzed, The Los Angeles Times said Wednesday.
The quiz -- which focused on food served at Denny's, Chili's, McDonald's and Romano's Macaroni Grill chain restaurants -- asked Californians to identify the low calorie, low salt, high fat or high calorie menu items from a list of four choices.
In a choice between lasagna and Caesar salad at the Macaroni Grill, it turns out the lasagna is lower in fat than the Caesar salad.
The newspaper said even the center's executive director, Harold Goldstein, flunked the test.
"More and more fast-food restaurants are claiming that they are providing healthy choices, and commonly the choice will have a word like 'salad' in it," Goldstein said. "But you could be blindfolded throwing a dart at the menu board, and you've got a better chance at making the healthy choice."
