More than 16,500 calories and 1,000 grams of fat will be consumed on July 4 by any competitive eater in the 2006 Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York who matches the current world record, according to an analysis by diet and nutrition web site CalorieLab. CalorieLab, Inc., has made available an FDA-format Nutrition Facts label showing the nutrient value of Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi's 2004 world record of 53.5 Nathan's Famous hot dogs, eaten in 12 minutes.

Susan McQuillan, a New York registered dietitian, recently took her son to Coney Island where he had a Nathan's Famous hot dog for lunch. She thinks an occasional fast food treat is fine and has even been known to treat herself to some "sliders" from White Castle.

But Ms. McQuillan cannot recommend that the non-competitive eater try the meal that the Nathan's competitors will be eating this Independence Day. "In twelve minutes, they will consume a week's worth of calories, 5 times the recommended daily limit for cholesterol, 17 times the daily limit for total fat, 21 times the limit for saturated fat, and more than 2 weeks worth of sodium"

But there is some good news: "At 69 grams, it's a super high-fiber meal!" say Ms. McQuillan, the author of "Breaking the Bonds of Food Addiction" and "Low-Calorie Dieting for Dummies"

Using the nutritional data disclosed by Nathan's Famous for their fast food menu items, CalorieLab determined the nutrient value for 53-1/2 hot dogs and computed the percentage of U.S. government recommended Daily Values represented by each nutrient.

CalorieLab president Mark Schrimsher commented, "The only fast food meal that exceeds Mr. Kobayashi's 2004 record that I am aware of is the '100-by-100' hamburger from West Coast chain In-n-Out Burger, which according to our calculations contains 19,300 calories and 1,409 grams of fat"

The In-n-Out Burger 100-by-100, which contains a hundred beef patties and a hundred slices of cheese, is part of In-n-Out Burger's "Secret Menu" According to fast food lore, it has only been occasionally ordered as a stunt by college fraternity members. No single individual has been officially documented to have actually consumed an entire 100-by-100.

CalorieLab has made available versions of the 53-1/2 hot dog Nutrition Facts label in various sizes and formats at http://calorielab.com/nathans Upon request, CalorieLab can supply customized versions, as well as Nutrition Facts labels representing the meal actually eaten by the winner on Tuesday.

CalorieLab, Inc., operates a diet and weight loss resource and information web site at calorielab.com