 |
Portion Distortion!
The portions, servings, helpings, slices and amounts of what we eat have grown dramatically over the past two decades.
The bigger-is-better motto has taken over the food industry, in conjunction with mass marketing to convince us to buy bigger sizes in order to save money. Supermarkets and restaurants use the promise of better value as a way of pushing extra food onto customers.
- Pizza pies were 10 inches in diameter back in the 1970s. Today the average size for a pizza is between 16 and 18 inches!
- A Hershey chocolate bar weighed 0.6 ounces its first year on the market. The standard bar now weighs 1.6 ounces. That’s almost 3 times its original weight!
- All of the most popular burger restaurants have increased the size of their hamburgers. The original Burger King burger weighed in at 3.9 ounces, and today a Double Whopper is 12.6 ounces. McDonald’s original patty started out at 1.6 ounces, and now the Double Quarter Pounder is 8 ounces — that’s five times more meat!
- Even diet food has grown in size. During the 1990s, Weight Watchers introduced their Smart Ones frozen meals with larger portion sizes. Lean Cuisine offered Hearty Portions, with 100 more calories than the original meal.
- Starbucks once offered the “short” cup of coffee at 8 ounces, but it is no longer on the menu. The smallest cup you can order is the “tall.” At 12 ounces, this cup is nearly twice the size of what was once considered a regular cup of coffee.
- When Hot Pockets advertised that they added 10% more filling to their microwavable sandwiches while keeping the price the same, their sales increased by 32%.
- If you compare the new edition of the classic cookbook The Joy of Cooking to the original, you will find identical recipes for cookies and brownies, except that the old recipe made fewer servings: for example, 16 brownies instead of 30. The modern portions are twice as large.
- The Olive Garden restaurant chain offers the “Never-Ending Pasta Bowl,” with unlimited refills of pasta for only $7.95.
Portion Distortion
Bigger portions mean we eat more than we need. When a larger portion is placed in front of us, we tend to eat 30% to 50% more! Most often, we don’t even realize that we are eating more.
- Women ate 31% more and men ate 56% more when served a 12-inch sub sandwich instead of a 6-inch sandwich.
- When cooking, people poured 4.3 ounces of oil from a 32-ounce bottle, but only 3.5 ounces from a 16-ounce bottle.
- Moviegoers ate 61% more popcorn when given the larger container than they did with a small size.
- Snackers poured about twice as many M&Ms from a jumbo bag (103) than they did when given a smaller package (63).
Hot Topics
SPECIAL REPORT!
Luke’s “Client-Only”
Guide to Weight Loss
38 Tips for “All Day Energy,”
Fertility & Longevity
That Happen to Melt Body Fat
What’s in the BHC Ezine?
Articles, tips, recipes & special offers!
Your email address will never be shared.
—————————————————–
“Your newsletter is concise and cutting-edge. I take action on your tips, and the recipes are 
delicious and simple, as promised.”
Patrick Martin of Young Sir Jim
“Luke’s approach made it easy for me, even though I’m a busy guy, and he gave me the tools to stay at my ideal weight and feel great long after our program ended. I just feel a lot better- healthy in both body and mind.”
Daniel Rahayel- Spiritual Writer and Counselor
Individual Coaching Graduate
“I have the ability now to make the nutrition and lifestyle shifts that get my energy, moods and weight back where I need them to be.”
Valencia James, Artist,Teacher, Activist
Individual Coaching Graduate
“My chocolate cravings are gone! Still hard for me to believe. I’m drawn to foods that sustain me rather than merely soothe me. And when I do indulge, I do so consciously and without guilt. This is a major breakthrough for me.”
Investor and Mother
“I used to be wracked with guilt about my food choices. Now, I crave good-for-me things. I am so much more powerful with food and I got tons of support around nutrition, but the benefits went way beyond food.”
Brennan Kahl, Animal Advocate
Individual Coaching Graduate
- Home |
- Members Only |
- Who We Help |
- How We Work |
- Testimonials |
- Programs |
- Your Next Step |
- Cooking Classes |
- Events |
- Articles |
- Resources |
- Connect |
- About |
- Free Stuff |
Copyright © 2009 all rights reserved to BaltimoreHealthCoach.com - Sitemap
Baltimore Nutrition & Cooking Classes – High Energy and Weight Balance
What a great article. You would enjoy the book by Dr. Brian Wansink called “Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think.” Dr. Wansink is the Director of the Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University and a world expert on eating behaviors. And I have the pleasure of working with him.
In the book he does really ingenious, fun and clever experiments exposing our portion distortion including watching a theatre full of moviegoers eat 5 day old stale popcorn just because it was given to them. I believe you would enjoy this book. It has priceless information in it that will change the way you look at food.
The book was a catalyst for http://www.mindlessproducts.com where you can find his “Thinware” line which are dish sets proven to make people eat less because of their shape, design, size and color.
The book was also the catalyst for The Mindless Method, http://www.mindlessmethod.com. The only weight loss plan (NOT A DIET) endorsed by Dr. Wansink and based on all his 20+ years of research. Check them out. You will be most interested.
Enjoy Better Living Through Less ThinkingTM