Courtesy of Elaine Magee

The days of dining in restaurants only for special occasions are over. Today, for many people, eating out is an almost daily occurrence.

Here’s the problem: Restaurant menu items are usually low in fiber but high in calories, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium—not exactly the nutritional profile you want if you are trying to eat a healthy diet to prevent disease.

Couple this with the fact that restaurants tend to serve their meals in mammoth-sized portions and that you have no idea how many calories or grams of fat are in the menu items you are ordering, and you’ve got the perfect (dietary) storm.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. By keeping the following restaurant tips in mind, you will be able to enjoy eating out while avoiding an overdose in calories, fat, saturated fat, and more!