The aroma hits you as soon as you cross the threshold. Popcorn. It's tough to resist the pull of that buttery delight in a movie theater. But if the FDA has their way you might say no to that theater staple.

The FDA's preview of coming attractions is causing quite a stir. It's considering whether the new Health Care law on posting calorie counts at chain resaurants and vending machines also includes airplanes, convenience stores and, you got it, movie theaters.

Representatives from those industries say that was never the intent of the law. The FDA believes otherwise. And nutritionists are in full support.

They want patrons to see how those "between–meal" snacks are loaded with fat and calories. So how bad can theater food be? A large popcorn on average packs about a 1,200 calories and contains 100 grams of fat. Add 100 calories for each tablespoon of butter. If you purchase a jumbo box of candy add 500 more calories. If you wash it all down with a large soda add another 353 calories. Totaled that's a whopping 2000 calories, plus or minus the butter.

But if you can't resist noshing on popcorn, stick with a kid–sized serving and forgo the added butter. Even if it seems like a good deal avoid the larger sizes completely. You may save a few pennies, but you'll add hundreds of calories going from small to medium.

The FDA says this preview "draft guidance" is meant to show what the agency is thinking. The rules must be finalized by march 2011. The FDA is seeking public input at http://www.fda.gov/food/labelingnutrition/ucm217762.htm.