Eating out, especially several times a week, can take its toll on an otherwise healthy diet. But with a little know-how you can avoid many of the nutritional pitfalls of eating out whether you’re at a take-out counter or a top-notch restaurant.

The first step is to look for the Eat Smart! logo at participating restaurants, and you can be assured that healthier choices are available on the menu.

It’s up to you to make those healthier choices, so here are some tips on what to look for on the menu:

·        Choose broth instead of cream-based soup. Vegetable soup counts as one serving of vegetables.

·        Choose 100% fruit or vegetable juice. Watch for words like drink, punch, nectar, cocktail – these are not real juice.

·        Choose meals that include vegetables. Avoid deep-fried vegetables or vegetables in butter, cream, cheese, peanut or coconut sauce. Beware of Caesar salad – it’s loaded with fat. Ask for salad dressing on-the-side, and use it sparingly.

·        Choose a meat, fish, poultry or alternative prepared using a low-fat cooking method. Steaming, broiling, roasting, baking, barbecuing are lower fat cooking methods. Avoid breaded and fried food. Beware of portion size - if it’s bigger than a deck of cards, get a "doggy bag" and eat the rest at another meal.

·        Choose 2%, 1% or skim milk. Homogenized milk is higher in fat (3.5%) and should be avoided. Chocolate milk is a good alternative to a milk shake.

·        Choose a low-fat dessert. Fresh, canned or frozen fruit is best. Other good options are milk pudding, sherbet, gelatin, angel food cake and low-fat frozen yogurt.

·        Don’t forget the kids!
Ask for milk or 100% fruit juice with children’s meals instead of soft drinks.