What's served up at many restaurants could make you lose your appetite. The kids' meals can be some of the worst nutrition deals: At Chili's, a child's Pepper Pals Little Chicken Crispers with fries has a whopping 57 grams of fat. That's 6 grams above the recommended daily allowance for an 8-year-old. At Ruby Tuesday, a meal of Kids' Minis (burgers and fries) weighs in at a jaw-dropping 917 calories, 71 percent of the 1,290 calories a child age 4 to 8 should eat in a day.

A 2008 analysis of 1,474 kids' meals from national chain restaurants found that 93 percent had more calories and 45 percent had more saturated fat and trans fats than kids need.

Here, Good Housekeeping's top five ways to put healthier fare in front of your kids.

Opt for a sit-down restaurant.

In a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study that tracked more than 3,000 young adults for three years, each additional fast-food meal per week increased weight by a couple of pounds. But adding an extra restaurant meal didn't -- presumably because larger menus offer healthier options and smaller portions.

Look up nutrition info for your top three spots.

When University of Arkansas researchers asked 193 people to guess the number of calories in less-healthful restaurant meals, participants underestimated by more than 600 calories. In other studies, even nutritionists have low-balled calorie counts.

Since your local diner generally won't have its nutritional info listed anywhere, consider steering your kids to the breakfast section of the menu: Two eggs, two slices of bacon, a slice of wheat toast and a fruit cup can make a perfectly acceptable meal.

Get produce on their plates.

Researchers at the National Cancer Institute found that nearly all children and teens (75 percent to 95 percent) don't get enough veggies, and a quarter of children ages 1 to 8 and three-quarters of older children and teens don't get enough fruit.

If your child doesn't like the kiddie options, substitute something from the regular menu, like a side of fresh fruit.

Nudge them toward lean main dishes.

Key moves to make: Subtract the sauce and cheese. This makes a tremendous difference: A plain Whopper Jr. has a reasonable 290 calories and 12 grams of fat -- fine for a 'tween or teen once in a while. But add cheese and mayo, and the numbers catapult up to 420 calories and 25 grams of fat.

Borrow from the main menu.

Granted, grown-up dinner entrees can be expensive, but if two family members split a dish, it can be a win-win, nutritionally and financially. At Chili's, the Guiltless Grilled Salmon has just 395 calories and 6 grams of saturated fat (add some side dishes to make a meal of it).

ON ANOTHER MATTER ...

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