Mexican pizza: the calories are on the menu, and you decide

Putting calories on the menu changes surprisingly little. A Cochrane meta-analysis of 16 randomized studies with 9,850 people, mostly in restaurants and cafeterias in high-income countries, found that calorie labels cut the energy people chose by about 11 calories on a 600 calories meal, with high certainty. So the number on the board is information, and the decision stays with you. No study we found names Mexican pizza itself. The US survey record gives it 249 calories, 15.5 g protein, 13.9 g fat, 4.5 g saturated fat and 375 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), and counts one pizza as 100 g. That is a recipe-based survey portion rather than a weighed restaurant item, so a bigger restaurant version scales every one of those numbers up. Everything else on this page comes from pizza in general or from fast food as a category.

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, the US survey record for Mexican pizza gives 249 calories, 15.5 g protein, 13.9 g fat, 4.5 g saturated fat and 375 mg sodium. — USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, Mexican pizza (58101835), Other Mexican mixed dishes (n = 1 FNDDS record) Evidence E source
  249 calories, protein 15.47 g, fat 13.94 g, saturated 4.489 g, carbohydrate 15.3 g, fiber 2.1 g, sodium 375 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g)

What a real portion looks like

• The US food survey counts one Mexican pizza as 100 g and one cup as 120 g, so a larger restaurant item scales these numbers up. — USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, Mexican pizza (58101835) (n = 1 FNDDS record) Evidence E source
  1 pizza 100 g; 1 cup 120 g; quantity not specified 100 g
• In a crossover RCT of 14 men eating pizza, eating until they could not eat another bite doubled intake to 3113 calories versus 1584 calories when comfortably full. — Fourteen healthy men, mean age 28, two pizza test meals (n = 14) Evidence B source
  3113 calories (2620 to 3605) maximal vs 1584 calories (1364 to 1804) ad libitum; insulin iAUC about 1.5-fold higher; glucose iAUC not different

What your body absorbs

• In an RCT of 96 adults eating pizza weekly for 8 weeks, vitamin D3 in mozzarella baked on the pizza raised serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D by 73 nmol/L at the high dose. — 96 healthy adults, 200 IU or 28 000 IU vitamin D3 in mozzarella on pizza once weekly, 8 weeks (n = 96) Evidence B source
  +73 +/- 22 nmol/L high dose (n = 49); +5.1 +/- 11 nmol/L low dose (n = 47); no adverse events

What cooking and storage change

• In a crossover RCT of 12 volunteers, pizza made with seawater instead of salt had nearly 50% less NaCl and cut the 3-hour sodium balance to +0.5 g from +1.6 g. — Twelve healthy volunteers, one standard and one seawater pizza (n = 12) Evidence B source
  About 50% less NaCl; sodium balance +0.5 g vs +1.6 g over 3 h, p = 0.002; no difference in satiety or glycemic response

What it does to your health

• Pooled observational data from 9 studies with 169,771 people tie higher fast food intake to 55% higher odds of fatty liver disease. — Nine observational studies, 169,771 participants (n = 169771) Evidence C source
  NAFLD OR 1.55 (1.51 to 1.59); obesity OR 1.37 (1.27 to 1.49)

Safety, limits and interactions

• In a crossover RCT of 43 children with type 1 diabetes eating two pizza slices, 27.9% to 39.5% developed hypoglycemia after the meal across three insulin schemes. — 43 children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes, lunch of two pizza slices (150 g, 40 g carbohydrate, 15 g fat) (n = 43) Evidence B source
  No difference in postprandial excursions; lower late glucose AUC with regular insulin split; hypoglycemia 27.9% (A, B) vs 39.5% (C)

What people believe that the data does not support

• A Cochrane review of 16 randomized studies found calorie labels on menus cut energy selected by only 11 calories for a 600 calories meal. — 16 randomized studies, 9850 participants, mostly restaurants and cafeterias in high-income countries (n = 9850) Evidence A source
  SMD -0.06 (-0.08 to -0.03), high certainty; about 11 calories less selected, 35 calories less consumed per 600 calories meal

Who this works differently for

• Pooled case-control data link fast food intake with about 2.4 to 2.7 times higher odds of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. — Riyadh case-control study (158 UC, 244 CD, 395 controls) merged with earlier studies (n = 797 in the local study) Evidence C source
  Pooled OR UC 2.41 (1.07 to 5.45); CD 2.65 (1.23 to 5.70)

What is still unknown

• A meta-analysis of 17 observational studies linked the highest fast food and ultra-processed food intake with 25% higher odds of breast cancer, but not in cohort studies. — 17 observational studies, 744,277 participants (n = 17 studies) Evidence C source
  OR 1.25 (1.09 to 1.43); significant in case-control studies, not in cohorts
• In the Nurses' Health Study II, the number of fast food outlets near home showed no link with inflammatory markers over 12 years. — US female nurses, CRP n = 1350, IL-6 n = 809, adiponectin n = 836, 1998-2011 (n = 1350) Evidence C source
  CRP beta 0.00 (0.01 to 0.01); no effect modification by neighborhood status

The bottom line

Portion is where the calories go. In a randomized crossover trial in 14 lean young men, eating pizza until they could not manage another bite doubled intake to 3,113 calories (95% CI 2,620 to 3,605), against 1,584 calories when they stopped at comfortably full. That was a single meal. Salt in the recipe drives the sodium load. In a crossover trial of 12 healthy volunteers eating Neapolitan pizza, dough made with seawater instead of salt had nearly 50% less NaCl, and the sodium balance over the next 3 hours fell to +0.5 g from +1.6 g. One trial used pizza to deliver a vitamin. In 96 healthy adults eating pizza once a week for 8 weeks, mozzarella fortified with 28,000 IU of vitamin D3 raised blood vitamin D by 73 nmol/L, against 5.1 nmol/L with 200 IU. The cheese was made for the study, so this tells you baked-on vitamin D3 still gets absorbed, and nothing about ordinary pizza. The health data is about fast food as a whole, and it is observational. Nine studies with 169,771 people tie higher fast food intake to 55% higher odds of fatty liver disease (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.51 to 1.59), from case-control and cross-sectional designs. That is an association with a category of eating. Breast cancer is unsettled. Across 17 observational studies the highest fast food and ultra-processed food intake went with 25% higher odds (OR 1.25, 1.09 to 1.43), but the link held only in case-control studies and disappeared in cohort studies. Who should be careful. If you watch sodium, the salt in the dough and toppings is what moves the number, as the seawater trial showed. Children and teenagers with type 1 diabetes are the group with trial data. In 43 of them eating two slices (150 g, 40 g carbohydrate, 15 g fat), between 27.9% and 39.5% went low after the meal across three insulin schemes, and the gap between schemes was not significant. How to dose insulin for pizza is a question for the diabetes team. Pooled case-control data link fast food with higher odds of ulcerative colitis (OR 2.41, 1.07 to 5.45) and Crohn's disease (OR 2.65, 1.23 to 5.70), with wide intervals and diet recalled after diagnosis.

Sources

1. mxp8-daily-r8-01 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2708507 Mexican pizza, code 58101835: Energy 249 KCAL, Protein 15.47 G, Total lipid (fat) 13.94 G, Fatty acids, total saturated 4.489 G, Carbohydrate, by difference 15.3 G, Fiber, total dietary 2.1 G, Sodium, Na 375 MG per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-29
2. mxp8-daily-r8-02 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2708507 Mexican pizza, code 58101835 - 1 pizza 100 g, 1 cup 120 g, Quantity not specified 100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-29
3. mxp8-daily-r8-03 · randomized crossover trial
   Mean energy intake was double in the maximal (13 024 (95 % CI 10 964, 15 084) kJ; 3113 (95 % CI 2620, 3605) kcal) compared with the ad libitum trial (6627 (95 % CI 5708, 7547) kJ; 1584 (95 % CI 1364, 1804) kcal).
   Br J Nutr, 2020 · checked 2026-09-29
4. mxp8-daily-r8-05 · randomized controlled trial
   Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D increased by 5.1 ± 11 nmol/L in the low-dose group (n = 47; P = 0.003), and by 73 ± 22 nmol/L in the high-dose group (n = 49; P < 0.0001).
   Can J Diet Pract Res, 2015 · checked 2026-09-29
5. mxp8-daily-r8-04 · randomized crossover trial
   SWP contained nearly 50% less NaCl and a larger amount of micronutrients compared with StP. ... a significant difference was found in the urine volume collected over the 3 h after the two meals (194 mL after StP vs. 292 mL after SWP, p = 0.018) and in the 3 h sodium balance (+1.6 g after StP vs. +0.5 g after SWP, p = 0.002).
   Nutrients, 2020 · checked 2026-09-29
6. mxp8-daily-r8-08 · meta-analysis of observational studies
   A higher consumption of fast food was significantly associated with a 55% increased risk of NAFLD (OR = 1.55, 95% CI: 1.51-1.59, p < 0.001, I2 = 15.6%).
   Front Public Health, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
7. mxp8-daily-r8-06 · randomized crossover trial
   The test meal consisted of two slices of pizza (weight: 150 g, carbohydrates: 40 g, fat: 15 g, protein: 20 g, and calories: 380 kcal). ... Postprandial hypoglycemia developed in 12 participants (27.9%) following Interventions A and B and in 17 participants (39.5%) following Intervention C (p=0.32).
   Pediatr Diabetes, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29
8. mxp8-daily-r8-07 · Cochrane meta-analysis
   Calorie labelling of food led to a small reduction in energy selected (SMD -0.06, 95% CI -0.08 to -0.03; 16 randomised studies, 19 comparisons, 9850 participants; high-certainty evidence), ... These effect sizes suggest that, for an average meal of 600 kcal, adults exposed to calorie labelling would select 11 kcal less (equivalent to a 1.8% reduction), and consume 35 kcal less (equivalent to a 5.9% reduction).
   Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
9. mxp8-daily-r8-10 · meta-analysis of observational studies
   Similarly, the meta-analysis revealed higher odds of fast food intake associated with UC and CD, with pooled odds ratios (95% CIs) of 2.41 (1.07, 5.45) and 2.65 (1.23, 5.70), respectively.
   Nutrients, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
10. mxp8-daily-r8-09 · meta-analysis of observational studies
    The pooled analysis of 17 observational studies showed a significant association between the highest FFs and UPFs consumption and increased breast cancer risk (OR 1.25, 95% CI [1.09-1.43], p = 0.001). Subgroup analysis revealed a significant positive association between FFs and UPFs consumption and breast cancer risk in case-control studies, but not in cohort studies
    Glob Health Res Policy, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
11. mxp8-daily-r8-11 · prospective cohort
    In conclusion, we found no evidence for longitudinal associations between FFOs count and inflammatory markers in this study.
    Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis, 2026 · checked 2026-09-29