Back in 2008, the New York City Board of Health started requiring all food establishments with more than 15 locations to start prominently listing calorie 
counts on all food items for all the world to see. I am quite sure the next morning, many waiters and cashiers were a bit tired of hearing people scream, “WHAT? How many is in that?!?” the day after the curtain came up.
Interestingly enough, it did not have the effect they had hoped for. A study conducted a year later concluded that while it made people more aware what they were eating, it did not change what they chose to buy.
In fact, it seems that people are more price elastic than calorie elastic (almost a pun, but not quite). People, especially those in lower income classes, tend to decide what’s for lunch based on their wallet instead of their daily grease quota .
Food establishments saw this as an opportunity: what if we made the portions smaller and charged more for the “low calorie” option? The per calorie profit goes up. This was the genesis of the “mini-cupcake” you see in the display case at Starbucks.
However, just because you can place this cute little thing in your mouth with two fingers instead of cramming it in with your whole hand does not make it a good option. Check out the facts: it is 190 calories and looks like it is about 10 feet away even when you hold it in your palm. You really need to decide if that is worth 10% of your daily caloric intake.
Chomp. Chomp. Gone.
There goes a tenth of the food you get to have today. No thanks. In case you were wondering, chomp chomp gone equals 25-30 minutes of work on a stationary bike.
Foods like this are calorie dense. It is OK for a treat every once and a while, but do not fool yourself that they are a better choice because they are “cute”.
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