Foods From United, LAX Reach New Heights

Healthful airline food?

Sounds like an oxymoron. But the brave souls at the Washington D.C.-based Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine sampled the food on the nation’s seven major domestic carriers and lived to rate the stuff for the rest of us.

Topping the survey for the second year running was United Airlines, whose entrees include a cholesterol-free vegetarian steak and low-fat mushroom ravioli. Continental ranked second with cholesterol-free entrees such as vegetarian stuffed green peppers, while American and TWA won honorable mention for their cholesterol-free meals.

Delta ranked dead last on the health-o-meter. Their veggie entrees, such as the spinach ragout, are low in cholesterol but loaded with fat, according to the physicians committee.

Travelers should always call ahead to reserve a vegetarian meal or other special entree. But health-conscious Southland travelers who decide to eat before they get on the plane are in for good news.

The physicians committee ranked Los Angeles International Airport as the best airport in the country in which to find a variety of restaurants serving healthful, low-fat foods. Fat fighters should avoid Cleveland’s Hopkins International Airport, which ranked last in the survey of the 25 biggest airports.

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Marla Dickerson covers tourism for The Times. She can be reached at (714) 966-5670 and at marla.dickerson@latimes.com