If you go to the internal website for McDonald’s employees, www.mcresourceline.com, today you’ll see nothing but a big, white screen. A few days ago, the site was full of healthy eating tips for employees, including photos of what appeared to be several McDonald’s products (Big Macs, fries, etc.) that were labeled as the “unhealthy choice.” The healthier choice, according to the website, was a sandwich that looked startlingly close to what you would get if you went to, say, Subway.

This wasn’t just some kind of hacker’s joke-posting. It was the word from the company itself, warning about the dangers of fast food: “While convenient and economical for a busy lifestyle, fast foods are typically high in calories, fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt, and may put people at risk for becoming overweight,” the website advised, according to a New York Daily News story just before Christmas.

Healthier choices involve sacrifices, the website suggested. “In general, avoiding items that are deep-fried are your best bet.”

So the message to employees would be this: Do as we say, not as we sell.

Tod Robberson is an editorial writer for The Dallas Morning News. This column was distributed by MCT Information Services.