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Obesity On Kids' Meal Menu?

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That burrito on the kids menu? Not as healthy as you might have thought. According to a new studyby the Center for Science in the Public Interest, every single children's meal offered at chains such as Chipotle, Panda Express, Dairy Queen, and Hardee's fell short of standards adopted by the center from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's nutritional recommendations. 

Dallas County has the highest density of fast food restaurants in North Texas, according to the USDA. And even though more chains are adding fruit and vegetables to kids meals, like carrots and apple slices, those options aren't always available.

According to the report, "Kids' Meals: Obesity on the Menu," 97% of the over 3,000 kids' meals analyzed don't meet basic nutritional standards and 91% don't meet the National Restaurant Association's nutritional guidelines for its voluntary program "Kids LiveWell.

Lauren Silverman was the Health, Science & Technology reporter/blogger at KERA News. She was also the primary backup host for KERA’s Think and the statewide newsmagazine  Texas Standard. In 2016, Lauren was recognized as Texas Health Journalist of the Year by the Texas Medical Association. She was part of the Peabody Award-winning team that covered Ebola for NPR in 2014. She also hosted "Surviving Ebola," a special that won Best Long Documentary honors from the Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI). And she's won a number of regional awards, including an honorable mention for Edward R. Murrow award (for her project “The Broken Hip”), as well as the Texas Veterans Commission’s Excellence in Media Awards in the radio category.