Food in the News: Finding Healthy Food Options at Restaurants

By Kelly Regan, Let's Move Pittsburgh

To increase awareness of children’s health and wellness topics, Phipps' Let’s Move Pittsburgh program presents Food in the News, a column on local, state and national health policies and nutrition related updates that impact you.

Live Well Allegheny Restaurants

Starting in 2015, Live Well Allegheny, an initiative focused on improving the health and wellness of Allegheny county residents, began the Live Well Allegheny Restaurant program. The program recognizes restaurants that first provide intent, followed by tangible action steps, to improve access to healthy foods for their customers. There are currently 42 Live Well Restaurants throughout the county, and the number continues to grow.¹

While the requirements to be designated a Live Well Restaurant are not completely standardized, at a minimum, restaurants must eliminate Trans-fats, be smoke free, and may not sell tobacco products of any kind. Additionally, restaurants must commit to at least four action steps to improve the health of their menu items and overall environment.² Some steps that current Live Well Restaurants have taken include providing calorie and sodium content for items on their menus, offering low calorie options and half or smaller portion options, using plant-based oils in place of animal fats, providing vegetarian and vegan options, offering low calorie salad dressings and offering space to store bicycles, among many others.¹

In addition to Live Well Restaurants, there are also currently 13 Live Well School Districts, 14 Live Well Workplaces, and 49 Live Well Communities in Allegheny County. Phipps Conservatory and Phipps Café are each included as a Live Well Workplace and Restaurant.

Visit the Live Well Allegheny website to learn more about the process of becoming Live Well designated restaurant, and check out this map to find a Live Well Restaurant near you.

Sources

1. Live Well Allegheny Restaurants
2. Live Well Restaurants Launched as Newest Initiative Under Live Well Allegheny