
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 22, 1995                   TAG: 9503220080
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Chicago Tribune
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

WHERE'S THE FAT? MAYBE IN THAT SANDWICH

If you think that having a tuna salad sandwich for lunch instead of a greasy cheeseburger is the lower-fat, more healthful way to go, think again.

According to a study on restaurant sandwiches released Tuesday, the typical deli-style tuna salad sandwich has as much fat as three McDonald's Quarter Pounders.

``People tend to think of a sandwich as just a bite to eat, but many sandwich shops are giving (consumers) a dinner's worth of fat and calories between those two slices of bread,'' said Jayne Hurley, a registered dietitian and senior nutritionist for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which produced the study.

The center previously has conducted much-publicized studies on Mexican and Chinese foods, as well as a report on Italian food that described fettuccine alfredo as a ``heart attack on a plate.''

Turning to another American staple, luncheon sandwiches, the center analyzed 135 sandwiches from independent and chain sandwich shops in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Washington.

It found that an average tuna salad sandwich has about one tablespoon of mayonnaise on the bread and a third of a cup of mayo mixed into the salad, for a total of 56 grams of fat.

``Even without extra mayo on the bread, you're talking 716 calories, two-thirds of a day's fat and half a day's sodium,'' Hurley said, referring to government-recommended daily limits on fat and sodium intake. ``Tuna is almost fat free, but it's drowning in a third of a cup of mayonnaise.''

A Reuben - corned beef or pastrami, sauerkraut, cheese and Russian dressing - also fared poorly in the study, weighing in at 50 grams of fat.

The center rated a turkey sandwich with mustard as one of its ``Better Bites'' with its 2 grams of saturated fat and 6 grams of total fat.

None of the sandwiches tested merited the center's ``Best Bite'' ranking because of their ``runaway sodium levels.''

Roast beef sandwiches with mustard, also a ``Better Bite,'' ranked second with 4 grams of saturated fat and a total of 12 fat grams. However, if mayonnaise is added, the total fat is doubled to 24 grams, Hurley warned.

The center recommends that sandwich lovers order extra bread and split the filling for a second sandwich (perhaps for a friend) and use low-fat condiments like mustard and ketchup.

The study included six types of subs from Subway, the nation's largest sandwich chain. ``Overall, a Subway sub has less fat than its sandwich counterpart if you get a small 6-inch sub,'' Hurley said.

Michael Jacobson, the center's executive director, said the primary goal of the study is to provide the public with nutritional information on restaurant food and to encourage restaurants to offer more healthful items.

His tips for sandwich-happy consumers include asking for light cheese, low-fat mayo and fat-free dressings.

by CNB