CAREY

Subway has best choice for fast food for kids

What’s the healthiest fast-food choice for kids? Subway, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a health advocacy group. Subway’s “Fresh Fit for Kids” meal — a half sub with turkey or ham, apple slices or raisins and low fat milk — contains less than 430 calories, the limit the center considers healthy for children 4 to 8 years old.

The center’s new survey of chain restaurants’ kids meals said the gut-buster was Chili’s country-fried chicken crispers, cinnamon apples and chocolate milk, weighing in at a sumo-satisfying 1,020 calories.

At five others — Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell, Sonic, Jack in the Box and Chick-fil-A — every possible combination of a child’s meal exceeds the 430-calorie limit.

McDonald’s fared little better: 93 percent of its Happy Meal and related choices packed in too many calories, not to mention lots of fat and salt, the center said.

The typical American child now gets a third of their food from eating in restaurants, the center said.

15 singers will combine in song, on TV to fight cancer

What would it sound like if 15 of the hottest female singers joined voices? The answer will be revealed Sept. 2.

That’s when “Just Stand Up” hits airwaves and iTunes. The song features Mariah Carey, Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Rihanna, Fergie, Sheryl Crow, Miley Cyrus, Melissa Etheridge, Ashanti, Natasha Bedingfield, Keyshia Cole, Ciara, Leona Lewis, LeAnn Rimes and Carrie Underwood. All sales of the star-studded single will benefit cancer research.

All 15 singers will share the stage to perform the song live on Sept. 5 during the Stand Up to Cancer television special, set to air simultaneously on ABC, NBC and CBS. Other stars expected to turn out for the hourlong fund- and awareness-raising program include Jennifer Aniston, Lance Armstrong, Katie Couric, Sally Field, Salma Hayek, Meryl Streep, Forest Whitaker and Reese Witherspoon.

Founded in 2007, Stand Up to Cancer is a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation that calls on entertainment- industry people and platforms to help fight cancer. See www.standup2cancer.org.

Health-care workers not washing hands enough

Nearly 60 percent of health-care workers do not wash their hands while on duty. Among the general public, according to a Harris Interactive survey, 12 percent of women and 34 percent of men do not wash their hands after using a public restroom. Why?

For one thing, rigorous hand washing is time-consuming, suggests Memphis, Tenn., infectious disease physician Manoj Jain.

“Guidelines advise that we first rinse, then soap for 20 seconds, then rinse again for 30 seconds; after this, we paper-dry our hands and turn the faucet off using the paper towel. For health-care workers, the procedure is supposed to be followed before and after every patient encounter. That means two minutes per patient visit, which adds up to an hour for a doctor who sees an average 30 patients a day, and 2 1/2 hours per shift for an ICU nurse. I have yet to find a doctor or a nurse who is so diligent.”

Studies show that nearly a quarter of health-care workers do not regularly disinfect their hands, even though, he said, “our hands are like swabs for the transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.”

— Journal wire reports