How to Avoid Portion Size Pitfalls to Help Manage Your Weight
| When eating at many restaurants, it's hard to miss that portion sizes
have gotten larger in the last few years. The trend has also spilled over
into the grocery store and vending machines, where a bagel has become a
BAGEL and an “individual” bag of chips can easily feed more than one.
Research shows that people unintentionally consume more calories when faced
with larger portions. This can mean significant excess calorie intake,
especially when eating high-calorie foods. Here are some tips to help you
avoid some common portion-size pitfalls. Portion control when eating out. Many restaurants serve more food than one person needs at one meal. Take control of the amount of food that ends up on your plate by splitting an entrée with a friend. Or, ask the wait person for a “to-go” box and wrap up half your meal as soon as it’s brought to the table.
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| Portion control when eating in.
To minimize the temptation of second and third helpings when eating at
home, serve the food on individual plates, instead of putting the
serving dishes on the table. Keeping the excess food out of reach may
discourage overeating. Portion control in front of the TV. When eating or snacking in front of the TV, put the amount that you plan to eat into a bowl or container instead of eating straight from the package. It’s easy to overeat when your attention is focused on something else.
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Go ahead, spoil your dinner.
We learned as children not
to snack before a meal for fear
of “spoiling our dinner.” Well, it’s
time to forget that old rule. If you
feel hungry between meals, eat a
healthy snack, like a piece of fruit
or small salad, to avoid overeating
during your next meal. Be aware of large packages. For some reason, the larger the package, the more people consume from it without realizing it. To minimize this effect:
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Out of sight, out of mind. People tend to consume more when they have easy access to food. Make your home a “portion friendly zone.”
- Replace the candy dish with a fruit bowl.
- Store especially tempting foods, like cookies, chips, or ice cream, out of immediate eyesight, like on a high shelf or at the back of the freezer. Move the healthier food to the front at eye level.
- When buying in bulk, store the excess in a place that’s not convenient to get to, such as a high cabinet or at the back of the pantry.
Related Resources
Check out these Web sites for more portion size tips:
The Portion Distortion Quiz from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute* (NHLBI) shows how portion sizes of some common foods have changed over the years.
Food labels can help you understand that portion sizes are often larger than you think. Click the links below to learn how to use the Nutrition Facts Label on food packages:
- How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label, Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
- Test Your Food Label Knowledge (quiz), Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
Take the NHLBI Visual Reality quiz* to test your skills at estimating serving sizes.
Check out www.MyPyramid.gov for detailed information on how much to eat from each food group without eating more calories than you need.
Do Increased Portion
Sizes Affect How Much We Eat? Research to Practice Series No. 2
(PDF-245k)
CDC, Nutrition and Physical Activity
This research-to-practice review examines what science underlies the
notion that large portion sizes have contributed to weight gain among
Americans. This section also offers ideas to practitioners about how to
counsel their patients or clients about portion size.
Please note: Some of these publications are available for download only as *.pdf files. These files require Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to be viewed. Please review the information on downloading and using Acrobat Reader software.
* Links to non-Federal organizations found at this site are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at these links.
Page last updated: June 20, 2008
Content Source: Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion