In a quest to reinvent its image, McDonald's is on a health kick. But some of its nutrient-enhanced meals are actually comparable to junk food, say some health experts. 
 
 One of new kale salads has more calories, fat and sodium than a Double Big Mac. 
 
 Kale, a leafy green vegetable chock-full of vitamins, has become a trendy superfood. In Canada, the global fast food chain recently tossed the green into a breakfast wrap and a line of salads. 
 
 McDonald's boasts on its site that the "Keep Calm, Caesar On" chicken salad contains "real parmesan petals" and "a nutrient-rich lettuce blend with baby kale." 
 
 But once you plop the accompanying Asiago Caesar dressing on the "crispy chicken" version, the salad's nutritional profile doesn't look so good. According to McDonald's own numbers, the salad tops up at 730 calories, 53 grams of fat, and 1,400 milligrams of sodium. 
 
 "Health-wise, I think it's fat and sodium overload," says Toronto registered dietitian, Shauna Lindzon. 
 
 It's hard to believe, but the Double Big Mac may be a healthier option than McDonald's Caesar salad on a number of fronts. (Philip Street/CBC) 
 
 You'd have to chow down three traditional McDonald's hamburgers to consume about the same number of calories. 
 
 A Double Big Mac actually has fewer calories and much less fat, although it does contain slightly more saturated fat. At 1,400 milligrams, the Caesar salad's sodium content also beats the burger's. 
 
 Health Canada recommends adults should not exceed 2,300 milligrams of sodium daily and ideally aim for 1,500 milligrams. 
 
 "By eating that salad, you're getting your sodium for the day," said Lindzon. Average adult women would also be getting about one third their recommended daily calories. 
 
 McDonald's kale kick 
 
 McDonald's made headlines last year when it announced it would be adding kale to menu items. The news came on the heels of lagging sales and a declaration by new CEO Steve Easterbrook that he planned to turn the chain into a "modern, progressive burger company." 
 
 Obesity expert Dr. Yoni Freedhoff says the chain is trying to appeal to consumers' need to "feel like they're not making such terrible choices." He adds, "Words like 'kale' can help do that." 
 
 But the Ottawa doctor says there's not much difference between a salad and a burger when both have similar salt and calorie content. 
 
 Lindzon applauds McDonald's for adding more vegetables to its meals. But the consulting dietitian says consumers still need to be aware of what they're eating. 
 
 "Putting kale into the menu doesn't mean you're getting a healthy choice," she says. 
 
 Count calories carefully 
 
 Even McDonald's lightest chicken kale salad is not a nutritional winner for Lindzon. 
 
 McDonald's I'm Greek-ing Out salad with kale. (McDonald's) 
 
 Combined with the Greek Feta Dressing, the "I'm Greek-ing Out" salad with grilled chicken amounts to: 420 calories, 26 grams of fat, and 1,080 milligrams of sodium. That's almost the same calorie, fat and salt content as a Double Cheeseburger. 
 
 To make it healthier, Lindzon recommends using only half the dressing to cut calories and fat and removing the feta to cut down on salt. 
 
 McDonald's says customers can modify many menu items to make them healthier. "[They] have the choice to have a salad with or without dressing, select a burger without the bun, choose their chicken protein crispy or grilled," said spokesperson Adam Grachnik in an email to CBC News. 
 
 He added customers can find nutritional information online including calorie, fat, and salt content for all menu items. 
 
 CBC News had to do some searching online to crunch the numbers for salads. Nutritional information for the kale salads excludes the dressing they're served with. We found the dressings in a separate category under "condiments." 
 
 Nutritious oatmeal? 
 
 CBC News also scoped out the nutritional profile for McDonald's Fruit and Maple Oatmeal with maple brown sugar. It's advertised on the company's site as "nutritious made delicious!" 
 
 The hot cereal does offer 5 grams of fibre. But, it also contains 33 grams of sugar. 
 
 McDonald's Fruit and Maple Oatmeal with maple brown sugar. (McDonald's) 
 
 Lindzon notes some of the sugar comes from fruit such as apples and dried cranberries. But she points out a can of Coke has close to the same total amount of sugar — 39 grams in a roughly 473 ml can. 
 
 "It's like drinking a can of pop's worth of sugar at breakfast," she says. 
 
 Grachnik, the McDonald's spokesman, noted that customers can eat the oatmeal without the brown sugar. 
 
 "Eating at McDonald's can fit into a balanced lifestyle," he said. Grachnik added that menu items can be customized. "You just have to ask the crew to reduce sodium, fat or calories to best suit the customers' needs," he stated. 
 
 Dr. Freedhoff says customers would be even better served if Canada forced restaurants to list calorie content right on its menus. 
 
 One province, Ontario, passed legislation mandating this for large chain restaurants. The new rules came into effect in 2017. 
 
 Dr. Freedhoff adds that no amount of public information can make up for the fact that restaurants typically don't serve up health food. 
 
 "There really aren't many safe things to order at any restaurant," he says. "If you want to learn how to eat healthy, eat out less often [and] learn how to cook." 

 What the kale? 
 
 One of McDonald’s new salads tossed with the leafy green superfood has more calories, fat and salt than a Big Mac. 
 
 The Premium Southwest Salad with Buttermilk Crispy Chicken starts with a nutritious, low-calorie base of baby spinach and baby kale. 
 
 But once you pile on the buttermilk-battered chicken, cheddar and jack cheeses, chili-lime tortilla strips, black beans and corn - and then pour on that Newman’s Own creamy ranch dressing - the salad bowl balloons to 710 calories, 43 grams of fat and 1,330 milligrams of salt. 
 
 The Premium Bacon Ranch Salad, which adds bacon to the buttermilk-battered chicken dish, weighs in at 690 calories, 45 grams of fat and 1,530 milligrams of salt. 
 
 Bring on the beef - you may be better off eating a Big Mac over a McDonald's salad. (Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images) 
 
 Bring on the beef: A Big Mac stacked with two beef patties, American cheese, pickles, onions, lettuce and special sauce, in comparison, weighs in at 540 calories, 28 grams of fat and 970 milligrams of salt. 
 
 “I applaud McDonald’s for expanding their menu, but this is disappointing,” says Manhattan dietitian Tanya Zuckerbrot. 
 
 “They could have delivered a really healthy salad to offset some of the more unhealthy options on the menu, and some of these ingredients are so obviously calorically dense,” she adds. “It’s like, would you like some kale with your toppings?” 
 
 It gets worse. Canadian news site CBC found even heftier “healthy” salads north of the border. 
 
 The Double Big Mac (pictured) has fewer calories, salt and fat than the kale Caesar salad bowl. (mcdonalds) 
 
 The Golden Arches’ “Keep Calm, Caesar On” salad bowl served with baby kale sabotages itself with seasoned crispy chicken, bacon, garlic focaccia croutons, parmesan cheese petals and a creamy Asiago Caesar dressing that top out at a whopping 730 calories, 53 grams of fat and 1,400 milligrams of salt. 
 
 That’s worse than the Double Big Mac - which isn’t even on McDonald’s menus in the States, unless you ask your server to double the already weighty Big Mac. The four beef patties, processed cheese slices, pickles, onions and lettuce slathered in special sauce on a bun has just 680 calories, 38 grams of fat and 1,340 milligrams of sodium compared to the killer kale salad. 
 
 The American Heart Association recommends eating just 2,000 milligrams of sodium a day, and a person trying to maintain their weight should eat between 1,200 and 1,500 calories. 
 
 “You’re getting almost half of your caloric needs for the day and 50% of your sodium intake in just one of these salads,” marvels Zuckerbrot. 
 
 You can even save calories eating a Double Big Mac over the "Keep Calm, Ceasar On" salad bowl. (mcdonalds.ca) 
 
 The fast food chain is having an identify crisis as it tries to keep its comfort-food base hungry for the burgers, fries and breakfast sandwiches that made it a global juggernaut. 
 
 An ad campaign early in 2015 told vegetarians to “kindly avert your eyes” because “you can’t get juiciness like this from soy or quinoa.” It also boasted that it would never serve kale on a burger. 
 
 But then McDonalds turned the tables by rolling out three kale salads in Canada later in the year, and adding kale and spinach to $4 breakfast bowls in California to lure in customers worried about super-sizing themselves. 
 
 McDonald’s reps have yet to respond to requests for comment. 
 
 Not all of the burger chain’s salads are salt and calorie bombs, however. Zuckerbrot suggests swapping your crispy chicken out for grilled chicken in the same Premium Southwest Salad, and hold the creamy dressing, cheese and tortilla strips to make the dish a more palatable 230 calories, 5 grams of fat and 740 milligrams of sodium. 
 
 Or a side salad of baby spinach and kale, mixed greens and grape tomatoes is just 15 calories and 10 milligrams of salt with zero fat if you hold the dressing. 
 
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– The CBC has uncovered a great example of why you should always read nutritional labels: A kale salad McDonald's is serving in Canada contains more calories than a Double Big Mac. The "Keep Calm, Caesar On" salad—made with lettuce, baby kale, crispy chicken, and Asiago Caesar dressing—is 730 calories (the number posted on McDonald's website doesn't include the dressing) while the Double Big Mac is 680. The salad also delivers more salt (1,400 milligrams) and fat (53 grams). The New York Daily News, meanwhile, notes that the Premium Southwest Salad (also with baby kale) offered by McDonald's in the US is nearly as bad at 710 calories, 43 grams of fat, and 1,330 milligrams of salt when made with buttermilk crispy chicken. "Putting kale into the menu doesn't mean you're getting a healthy choice," a dietitian tells the CBC. "By eating that salad, you're getting your sodium for the day." A McDonald's rep says customers can lower the calories, salt, and fat in their meals by choosing grilled over crispy chicken, omitting salad dressings, or even eating a burger without the bun. If you're turned off by the 33 grams of sugar in McDonald's Fruit and Maple Oatmeal, for example, you can ask that it be made without maple brown sugar. Otherwise, "it's like drinking a can of pop's worth of sugar at breakfast," says the dietitian. (McDonald's also is serving Happy Meals with books now.)