By: Shannon Baker, Morgan Lowrie, Jp Marki, Yensy Ortiz, John Stocks

Trying to find the healthiest burgers at McDonald’s is a little like talking about the most tasteful Lady Gaga costume or the kindest way to wage nuclear war. Once you walk beneath those golden arches, you should just accept the truth: you are being very, very bad, and you are eating something with almost no redeeming nutritional value.

Nevertheless, for those of you who are fond of self-delusion, or who feel the need to find the silver lining in that grease-stained burger wrapper, we have decided to crunch a few numbers in order to come up with the five healthiest options. Calculators and cameras in hand, we set off for McDonald’s in order to chow down on the best of the burgers -- all in the name of science, of course.


When looking at the nutritional information for these burgers, we tried to balance the bad stuff (fat, calories, and sodium) with the paltry amounts of beneficial nutrients (iron, protein, calcium and fibre) that these sandwiches contain. We calculated everything per 100 grams of serving size and came up with a ranking.

So, without further ado, here they are: McDonald’s five ‘healthiest’ burgers.

Interview with a McDonald's Manager

1. The Grilled Chicken (Classic and Southwest)


The star in the McDonald’s lineup is the Grilled Chicken. With only 5 grams of fat and 180.55 calories per 100g serving size, it definitely qualifies as the skinniest kid at fat camp. It is also relatively low in “bad” fats (the trans and saturated variety), and fairly high in protein and fibre. It’s a bit high in sodium, but compared to many of the other burgers it doesn’t do badly even in this category.

The best surprise of all is that it’s relatively tasty. It comes with real vegetables, a pretty decent ciabatta-style bun, and not-excessive amounts of sauce. Although one of our intrepid taste-testers labeled it as “bland,” others felt as if this is one of the best burgers McDonald’s has to offer. Know the Facts

2. The Crispy Chicken (Classic and Southwest)

Runner-up in our “best of the bad” McDonald’s burger health competition is the Crispy Chicken. That crunchy breading means that it scores a little lower in most categories than its grilled counterpart, but overall it is a solid choice for the same reasons: relatively low ‘bad’ fat and calorie content, high protein and fibre, and low cholesterol.

Where it falls a little short of its less-crispy brother is in sodium content. This little chicken patty is sure to make you swell up after consuming 549g of sodium per 100g. And boy, can you taste it -- this burger tastes a lot more like breading and salt than it does chicken. Unlike the Grilled Classic, this burger cannot be described as bland, per se -- but overall, the taste-testers were underwhelmed, especially considering the hefty price tag. Know the Facts

3. Quarter Pounder Without Cheese

Chicken may be all well and good for some, but we all know that sometimes only a real beef burger will do -- a real, juicy beef burger. It is, after all, what McDonald’s is famous for. And, if you are craving that red meat while trying
to avoid a calorie-and-fat induced heart attack, this one is a pretty good choice. It is relatively low in sodium, quite high in protein, and contains lots of calcium. In terms of fat content, it is relatively low overall, although with higher levels of ‘bad’ fats than we’d like to see. Overall, it is not too bad on calorie count, although cholesterol is high. It isn’t going to make Weight Watcher’s most recommended food list, but if that is what you cared about, you wouldn’t be eating at McDonald’s in the first place.

This burger is pretty unimpressive to look at. It comes in an old-fashioned hamburger bun, with no special sauces or any vegetables besides ketchup and a pickle. This is a classic McDonald’s burger from back before they decided to get fancy, and you get exactly what you expect -- a pretty good burger, with a decent balance between taste, price, and less-than-horrifying nutritional stats. Know the Facts


4. Angus Burger
Some people may be surprised to see the Angus Burger on this list. It is a big, meaty burger, and most would assume it’s a big no-no on the nutritional side. Well, we are pleased to report that, when stripped of those sneaky fatty add-ons like bacon and cheese, this burger isn’t quite as bad as it might seem. It is pretty low in sodium and high in protein, and contains a good dose of iron. In terms of fat, it’s a little on the high side, particularly in the saturated and trans fat categories, but at least it still beats out some of the other famous burgers like the Big Mac.

The Angus burger also looks and tastes like a real burger -- it comes with the good bun, has some tasty sauce (although it is slathered on a bit too generously), and comes with tomatoes and lettuce, albeit slightly wilted. It tastes good, too, despite the patty being a little bit watery. Know the Facts

5. Hamburger

Rounding out our list is the classic McDonald’s hamburger. This little guy is fairly low in fat and high in fibre, and contains no extra sauces or toppings to add extra fat. It is a good source of iron and calcium and middle-of-the-road in terms of calories and cholesterol. Its downfalls include high sodium and an inordinately large amount of sugar. Still, if eating at McDonald’s is a nutritional crime, this one definitely counts as a misdemeanor.

Unfortunately, although the nutritional stats aren’t bad,
the taste certainly is. This burger is about as bland as they come -- the patty is thin and dry, the bun chewy and tasteless. Frankly, you might as well eat the cardboard box; it would probably be healthier, and the taste would be similar. If you are going to eat at McDonalds, our opinion is: get a real burger. Know the Facts

Sides

In recent years, McDonald’s has vastly expanded its array of side orders in order to offer a little more variety and a few more healthy options.

Instead of french fries, a health-conscious consumer can now order a garden salad (with no dressing, of course). This is low in fat and calories, and high in vitamins -- good across the board. The spicy thai salad


offers a much bigger shot of fibre, but has the disadvantage of being much higher in sodium and sugar.

For dessert, we suggest two of the sweeter sides: the apple slices with caramel or the fruit and yogurt parfait. Both are low in fat, calories, cholesterol and sodium and, although they each have more than 10 grams of sugar per 100g serving, that is still significantly less than many of the other dessert-menu offerings.

On the beverage side, we all know that water is the best and healthiest of the drinks. But, barring that, one can get a nice hefty shot of calcium by ordering the 1% partly skimmed milk.

Know the Facts

Conclusion

Well, that’s it: the best of the bad of McDonald’s burgers. This restaurant’s fare will never be a nutritionist’s dream, but there is something inherently comforting about a McDonald’s burger -- something that brings most people back to childhood, when things like saturated fat and sodium levels just didn’t matter. This list shows the best way to order up that super-sized helping of nostalgia. Just do it with a salad on the side.

McHistory on Dipity.