Portion Distortion
Cookies as big as frisbees. Muffins the size of flower pots.
Bowls of pasta so deep, your fork can barely find the bottom. One
reason people's waistlines have expanded over the past few
decades is because food portions have too.
People today eat way more than they used to - and way more than
they need to. This means that they're constantly taking in more
calories than their bodies can burn. Unfortunately, lots of us
don't realize that we're eating too much because we've
become so used to seeing (and eating!) large portions.
Portion sizes began to increase in the 1980s and have been
ballooning ever since. Take bagels, for example: 20 years ago, the
average bagel had a 3-inch diameter and 140 calories. Today, bagels
have a 6-inch diameter and 350 calories. One bagel that size
actually contains half a person's recommended number of grain
servings
for an entire day!
The price of such overabundance is high. It's common
knowledge that people who consistently overeat are likely to become
overweight. But they also risk getting a number of medical
problems, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2
diabetes, bone and joint problems, breathing and sleeping problems,
and even depression. Later in life, people who overeat are at
greater risk for heart disease, heart failure, and stroke.
It's easy to understand why the food industry tends to serve
way more food than is necessary: Customers love to feel like
they're getting the best value for their money! But the value
meal is no deal when it triples our calories and sets the stage for
health problems.
So what can you do to take back control? A good place to start
is knowing about two things that can help you eat smart:
serving sizes
and
recommended amounts
of different foods.
Help Yourself: The Truth About Serving Sizes
Look at the label on any product package and you'll see a
nutrition information section that gives a serving size for that
food. Contrary to popular belief, this serving size is
not
telling you the amount you
should
be eating. It's simply a guide to help you see how many
calories and nutrients - as well as how much fat, sugar, and salt -
you get from eating a specific quantity of that food.
Sometimes the serving size on a package will be a lot less than
you are used to eating. In some cases, it's perfectly OK (and
even a good idea) to eat more than the serving size listed on the
package. For example, if you're cooking frozen vegetables and
see the serving size is 1 cup, it's no problem to eat more
because most vegetables are low in calories and fat yet high in
nutrition.
But when it comes to foods that are high in calories, sugar, or
fat, the serving size can alert you that you may be getting more
than is healthy. If you buy a 20-ounce bottle of soda and drink it
all at once, the amount you consumed is 20 ounces. But if the label
shows the serving size is 8 ounces, not only did you have 21/2
servings, you also had 21/2 times the listed calories as well as
21/2 times the sugar.
Eat Smart: What's Recommended
Serving sizes tell you how much nutrition you're getting
from a particular food but they don't tell you which foods you
need to stay healthy - and how much of those foods you should eat.
That's where the U.S. Department of Agriculture's MyPyramid
comes in.
MyPyramid divides foods into six groups:
- grains
- vegetables
- fruits
- oils
- dairy
- meat and beans
MyPyramid then offers guidelines to help people figure out how
much of these foods they should eat based on age, gender, and
activity level.
Once we know the types of foods and quantities we should be
eating, it's easier to figure out how much of that heaping
plate of food our bodies actually need as opposed to how much they
want. Instead of going along with what your school cafeteria or
favorite restaurant puts on your plate, you can take control by
eating only the amount you need.
The Divided Plate and Other Portion Tips
Serving sizes on food labels and recommended amounts on
MyPyramid are usually given in grams, ounces, or cups. Of course,
most of us don't carry around food scales and measuring cups.
So how can we translate those amounts into quantities we can relate
to? That's where the following visual cues come in. (Just be
warned: Some might seem small, especially to recovering
super-sizers!)
One easy way to size up portions if you don't have any
measurements is to take a look at your hand. A clenched fist is
about a cup - and a cup is the amount experts recommend for a
portion of pasta, rice, cereal, vegetables, and fruit. A meat
portion should be about as big as your palm. And limit the amount
of added fats (like butter, mayo, or salad dressing) to the size of
the top of your thumb.
Another great way to visualize appropriate portions is to use
the concept of the "divided plate." Think of your plate
as divided into four equal sections. Use one of the top quarters
for protein. Use the other top quarter for starch, preferably a
whole grain. Then fill the bottom half with veggies. None of the
foods should overlap - or be piled high! Not only will dividing
your plate like this help you keep portions under control, it
can also help you to balance your meals.
Portion-Control Tips
Being aware of realistic portion sizes and visualizing portions
or using the "divided plate" concept will help you avoid
overeating. But sometimes these visual cues can be hard -
especially when foods are difficult to measure, like a sandwich, or
they're foods like chips and cookies that we tend to eat right
out of the bag.
More tips for portion control:
-
Eat your meals on a smaller plate so your meal looks larger. A
sandwich on a dinner-size plate looks lost; on an appetizer plate
it looks downright hefty.
- Avoid taking an entire bag of chips or a container of ice
cream to the couch. You're far less likely to overdo it if
you serve yourself a portion in the kitchen first.
- Try single-serving size foods (like those cute little 8-ounce
cans of soda!) to help your body learn what an appropriate
portion size is. These days all kinds of snacks and beverages are
available in "100-calorie" portions. Of course, the key
is to eat just one!
- Eat three well-rounded meals (with vegetables, proteins, and
carbs) and one or two healthy snacks at regular times throughout
the day. Skipping meals or waiting too long between them can make
you more likely to overdo it at the next meal.
- Add more salads and fruit to your diet, especially at the
start of a meal. This can help control hunger and give a sense of
fullness while controlling calorie intake.
- Try not to rush through your meals. Eat slowly and chew well
- giving yourself a chance to feel full before you take more. If
you do want seconds, go for more salad or veggies.
- Be aware that most restaurant portions are three or four
times the right serving size. Try sharing meals with friends,
ordering an appetizer as a main dish, or packing up the extra to
take home before you begin to eat.
- Don't be tempted to go for the giant value meal or the
jumbo drink just because they're only a few cents more than
the regular size.
Most important, make it a habit to let your stomach rather than
your eyes tell you when you're done with a meal. The key to
maintaining a healthy weight is to listen to your body's
natural signals about when it's hungry and when it's full.
Sometimes these signals can be confused by constant overeating or
constant dieting, which is why it pays to watch portion sizes and
make smart food choices.
Reviewed by:
Mary L. Gavin, MD
Date reviewed: February 2009
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice,
diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
© 1995-2009 The Nemours Foundation/KidsHealth. All rights reserved.