FAKE takeaway ready meals are rammed with calories and just as unhealthy as the real thing, research shows.
A study by the University of Birmingham found nine in 10 “dine-in” meal deals blow through the recommended 600-calorie dinner limit.
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The worst offenders contain more than 1,500kcal – three quarters of a woman’s daily requirement.
Supermarket shoppers can buy popular grub like curries, pasta, Chinese and pies in takeaway or restaurant style for a fraction of the price of going out.
Study author Dr Sheena Leek warned diners might slim their bill but not their waistline.
Dr Leek said: “A dine-in meal deal can be an easy and cheap way to get a filling and tasty dinner, or provide an economical alternative to a date night.
“But what is healthy for our wallets is not necessarily healthy for our bodies.
“Our study has found that these dinner meal deal combinations, more often than not, exceed the UK government guidance on calorie content.”
The NHS and Department of Health recommend adults eat between 400 and 600kcal for their dinner to maintain a healthy weight.
The study, now published in the book Responsible Marketing for Wellbeing and Society, looked at own-brand ready meals from three national supermarkets in England in 2018.
It found 93 per cent of dinner meal deals, many including sides and desserts, contained more than 600kcal per person.
Indian cuisine was the worst offender, while British fare was lowest in calories.
The maximum reached 1,526kcal in a single meal.
For comparison a takeaway butter chicken curry with pilau rice carries about 1,400kcal, while a McDonald’s Big Mac with medium fries is 940kcal.
Regularly eating too many calories causes weight gain as the body stores the unused energy as fat.
The average British man needs 2,500kcal per day and woman 2,000kcal.
Millions of us eat too much and two out of three Brits are overweight, with three in 10 dangerously so and classed as obese.
Dr Leek added: “If you are depending on these deals for your dinner, the vast majority of them make it extremely difficult to stick to the 600kcal suggestion.”
