Portion distortion

The serving size of peanut butter is 2 ounces, that is about the size of a ping-pong ball.  Do you honestly use that amount on your sandwich?  How about this;  the correct serving size of meat is equivalent to a deck of cards.  Cheese? The size of a domino.  Butter?  The tip of your thumb.

Although these are the recommended serving sizes of a few of the popular foods we eat, it is obvious that we do not abide by the recommendations, and often overindulge.  Yes, we choose to eat our larger, less healthy portion sizes in this day and age, but these larger portion sizes may be all we know, they are marketed this way, our friends and family eat these portion sizes, and that is what we are served when we go out.  We go to buffets, "all you can eat's", order in bulk from value menus, drink big gulps, super size it, and buy big to satisfy an even bigger appetite.

Can you say portion distortion?  Portion recommendations are now laughed at with individuals eating 3-4 times more than they should.  These recommendations are there for a reason!  They are there to provide a framework for the individual with no general knowledge when it comes to nutrition.  Food allergies are becoming more and more abundant in 2013 and we wonder why.  A good contributor is overeating continuously and creating intolerances to these particular items.  Think in terms of alcohol; if you have too much, you feel differently, you become impaired, and even sick.  Relate this to eating sweets or salty foods, the body will have a reaction, you can become impaired or sick, and too many reactions over time can not be good for the body.

My recommendation is of course eat in moderation.  Everyone should reward themselves with a little ice cream, but not the entire carton.  It is common to grab a bag of chips and sit to watch tv, but without even realizing it, you've just eaten the entire bag!  A simple change can be made to prevent this, portion out a serving into a bowl and leave the bag where it belongs, in the cabinet.  This will keep you accountable for knowing exactly how much you ate AND not overeating.

Don't become a victim of portion distortion!