The Portion Conspiracy- How Much are You Actually Eating?

Did you know that in the early 1990s, the standard size of a dinner plate increased by 2 inches from 10 inches in diameter to 12 inches? Do you have any idea how much food I can fit on an extra two inches of plate?

In the past few decades, serving sizes have grown along with our waistlines. Most of us rarely pay  attention to the amount of food we eat. We totally ignore portion sizes and never measure our food, we instead choose to “eyeball” plate sizes or depend on feelings as a guideline to stop eating. Most people don't know what constitutes a healthy portion but can we really be blamed for not knowing how much we should be eating?

Over the past few decades, portion sizes of all types of foods have grown. Everything from the size of a muffin, to the size of sandwiches, burgers and beverages etc...has been “super sized”.  We have been “advertised” into a distorted view of what a typical meal is supposed to look like. People have difficulty assessing their portion size and tend to overeat. 

How to Downsize?

Use smaller serving dishes. 

Use small glasses for milk, juice and other caloric beverages and large glasses for water

Plate your snacks. Don't snack directly from a large container. 

Avoid temptation. Foods that are visible and within reach encourage overeating. If possible, don't bring them into the house.

Use household objects to measure food.

Buy the smallest size possible.

Follow serving-size guidelines on packets.

Get an idea of what portion sizes for popular foods should look like by weighing food.

Examples of Recommended Portions

For cornflakes the recommended serving is 30g - one handful.

For banana recommended serving is 1 small.

For potato recommended serving is 180g - size of a computer mouse.

For butter recommended serving is 1tsp.

For canned tuna in water recommended serving is half a small can - 75g. 

For French dressing recommended serving is 1tbsp. 

For spaghetti recommended serving is 150g.

For red wine recommended serving is standard glass - 175ml.

Knowing Portion Sizes for Some Food Examples

Cheese Piece the size of a small matchbox (30g)

Chocolate 4 small squares (25g)

Chips 20 chips (165g)

Peanuts size of a golf ball (25g)

Cooked pasta size of a tennis ball (150g)

Cereal 1 handful or 5 level tablespoons (30g)

Meat Piece the size of a deck of playing cards (85g)

Fruit juice 1 small glass (150ml) 

Raisins 1tbsp (30g)

Cooked rice 5 heaped tablespoons or the size of a tennis ball (150g)

Ice cream 1 scoop