A Lesson on Portion Size

Most Americans trying to manage their weight are aware that they should choose lower-calorie, lower-fat foods. Portion sizes are another important factor in weight control.

“This is one of the main reasons our country has such a problem with obesity and being overweight,” says Sari Greaves, a New York City-based spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. “If there was a universal equation for losing weight, it would involve watching your p’s and q’s—portions and nutrient quality of foods—because how much you eat is as important as what you eat.” 

Food manufacturers and restaurant owners have added to our confusion over what constitutes a reasonable serving. In the last two decades, they have increased the portions of the foods they offer.

Larger sizes

Twenty years ago, the traditional 3-inch bagel that had 140 calories is now 6 inches and contains 350 calories. A small serving of fast-food french fries that weighed in at 2.4 ounces with 210 calories has ballooned to 7 ounces with 610 calories. 

“The problem for consumers is two-fold,” says Greaves. “Not only are they eating twice as much when they go out, but when they eat at home, they tend to make servings that are too big because they have lost sight of what constitutes a ‘reasonable’ serving size.” 

Greaves offers the following tutorial for bringing portions down to size.

Serving sizes given on nutrition labels of food packages are provided in cups, teaspoons, ounces, and other standard measures. But because most of us don’t carry around kitchen measuring devices, it’s more efficient to visualize what standard serving sizes should be. Relating portion size to an everyday item is an easy way to visualize what the size should be. 

“It’s also essential to know the difference between a portion and a serving size,” Greaves says.

A “portion” is how much food you choose to eat at one time, whether in a restaurant, at your desk at work, or at your kitchen table. A “serving” size is the amount of food listed on a product’s Nutrition Facts label.

“Remember, in addition to selecting a healthy variety of foods, look at the size of the portions you eat,” Greaves says. “Choosing nutritious foods and keeping portion sizes sensible can help you attain and maintain a healthy weight.” 

Portion comparisons