Ever gone to the break room for a midafternoon snack, then made the mistake of looking at the nutritional information for that bag of cookies or that jumbo candy bar you just opened? We’ve all done it — and most of us probably overcame our buyer’s remorse and ate it anyway, perhaps muttering, “Well, if I’d known what was in it …”

Thanks to a little known provision in the

Affordable Care

Act — aka Obamacare — we might soon find it easier to make informed decisions about what we’re putting into our bodies.

The law, starting next year, requires restaurant chains with more than 20 locations and vending operators with more than 20 machines to clearly post calorie information for the items on their menus and in their machines.

Coke, Pepsi and Dr Pepper aren’t waiting — they’re introducing new vending machines that let would-be buyers know how many calories they’re about to consume. The machines, bearing decals that say “Calories Count: Check, then Choose,” will be rolled out in Chicago and San Antonio before they’re released nationally.

Soda, of course, has gotten plenty of negative attention in the wake of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s move to limit the size of sugary soft drinks to 16 ounces or less. Last month the city’s board of health approved the measure.

Sure, there will always be those among us who knowingly overindulge, but there also are plenty of people who, when confronted with unpleasant or surprising information, will change behavior.

We’ll get the smaller size drink, or opt for the diet version.We’ll go for the pretzels instead of the potato chips. And when enough of us do that, we push the food and beverage industry to offer more options that cater to a health-conscious customer base.

And yes, those changes do happen.

Restaurant chains discovered there is a market for more healthful fast food, and we’re optimistic this trend is about to trickle down into the fastest of fast foods — the food and drinks we get from vending machines.