You can beat obesity through controlling serving size

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Some simple tips can help you keep track of your serving sizes.
Food serving sizes are getting bigger - especially in places like fast food restaurants. It's easy to become unaware of how much you are actually eating which, in turn, courts obesity and all its attendant health problems. Doctors at the Diabetes Center at Baylor Center say that a few simple tips can help you get back in control of your serving sizes.

Each day, go for five to nine portions of vegetables and fruits equivalent to a cup of salad greens or veg or baseball size orange. For grains, with an emphasis on whole grains, go for six servings like a cup of cereal or half cup of cooked pasta. Have two servings of lean meat and alternative equivalent to three ounces of chicken or fish or two teaspoons of peanut butter. For dairy, have two to three servings of one ounce cheese or eight ounces of milk.

Restaurants can be difficult. Keep track of serving sizes by having a side dish or starter as your main course and at home serve onto plates rather than out of a dish. It takes ten minutes after you begin a meal for your brain to start feeling full so it helps to eat more slowly so you consume less during that time. And finally, motivation is all - pin little notes of encouragement around the place and especially where temptation lurks (like the biscuit tin).

Source
Baylor Health Care System 6th September 2006

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