No matter how well you plan, every day can't be an ultra-healthy, bring-your-own-lunch-to-work day. But just because you're eating at a fast food place doesn't mean all bets are off. Get to know your options with the healthiest and unhealthiest foods at McDonald's.


Photo by Tony the Misfit.

To put this post together, we pored over the nutritional fact sheets for all the items at McDonald's. The following list of healthiest and unhealthiest foods was compiled based on several factors, including total calories, fat, and sodium content. It's up to you to decide which dietary trade-offs you're willing to make, because when you indulge in a little fast food, trades-offs are inevitable. Need a lot of protein? You'll be eating a lot of salt and fat too. Trying to avoid high sodium content? Good luck with that; you'll rarely find any truly low sodium items at any fast food restaurant outside of ordering fries with no salt.


Below you'll see our galleries for both the healthiest and unhealthiest items at McDonald's. Click through on each for the full run-down.

Five Healthiest Foods at McDonald's They may not be the healthiest foods on the planet (in fact, we can guarantee they're not), but… Read more

You don't always have time to bring a healthy lunch from home, and we certainly understand that. Without arguing over whether or not you should just grab an apple, try a few items from the healthier side of the McDonald's menu to cut down on the impact of eating fast food. (If you'd rather see everything on one long page rather than use the snazzy AJAX gallery, click here.)








Five Healthiest Foods at McDonald's They may not be the healthiest foods on the planet (in fact, we can guarantee they're not), but… Read more

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, eating a Quarter Pounder a day keeps his business brisk. Click on the image at left to see the worst foods on the McDonald's menu. (If you'd rather see everything on one long page rather than use the snazzy AJAX gallery, click here.)




Five Unhealthiest Foods at McDonald's It's tough to find a healthy meal at McDonald's, but if you go down this road, you're enjoying some Read more

The biggest key to eating healthier at a fast food place—which will come as a surprise to no one—is portion control. If you're going to grab McDonald's for lunch, you really need to ask yourself how important getting a huge meal like a Quarter Pounder with Cheese, a large fry, and a chocolate shake is, compared to a more moderate meal like a regular hamburger, a small fry, and a small Coke. The former provides for the entire daily caloric needs of an average size adult, while the latter leaves plenty of room for breakfast and dinner.


If you have your own tricks and menu choices for eating healthier at McDonald's (apart from the obvious "Don't eat at McDonald's!"), we'd love to hear them in the comments below.