Healthy eating is about making sure the portion sizes you consume are realistic. Many of us have become used to the platters of food served in restaurants, which are actually much larger than what we should be eating. In our quest for value, we have come to equate large servings with money well spent. What these large portions have really served up is an epidemic of overweight Americans! Here are helpful tricks when striving for healthy portions.
- Use measuring cups to serve foods like rice, pasta, mashed potatoes and soups. This will help you to actually consume a cup or a half a cup, without kidding yourself.
- Fill a serving utensil with water, then measure to see how much it holds. For instance, an ice cream scoop may hold a quarter-cup, while a soup ladle holds a half-cup. Pay attention to how this portion looks in a bowl or on your plate.
- Enlarge a meal with a generous serving of salad (remembering to watch how much dressing you use!)
- Use vegetables to add bulk to sandwiches, soups, casseroles, stir-fries and other dishes.
- A large bagel (4 1/2 ounces) contains 3 or 4 grain portions, a small bagel (2 ounces) only 2. One vegetable portion is just half of a small potato, so when you are shopping, start the process of thinking about portion control and downsize what you are purchasing.
- Slice and dice to make portions appear larger.
Published on July 11, 2008
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