Portion Sizes Start Shrinking.  Will You?

In response to cries to the food industry for help in dealing with the obesity crisis, Kraft Foods is poised to roll out smaller single-serving packages of some of its offerings.  Other companies are joining what appears to be an emerging trend.  You can now find 8-ounce Coke and Pepsi cans, for instance.  And the sandwich chain Quiznos now offers 4½ -ounce Diamond Mini Meltz as an alternative to its much larger subs.  McDonald's and Hershey's will soon be producing smaller portion products.

Will such downsizing help?  Perhaps.  It certainly can’t hurt.  But it won’t do the job of slimming people down to healthy weight all by itself–or make the diet more healthful overall.  Smaller serving sizes will have to be met at least halfway by some shifts in lifestyle:  less soda pop and more water (along with some skim or 1% milk); fewer meatball mini melts and more basic sandwiches like tuna or turkey on whole-wheat bread plus a couple tomato slices and lettuce leaves; and fruits and vegetables over smaller single-serving cakes and other fatty, sugary snacks. Physical activity levels have to rise, too.  That is, obesity cannot be eradicated by altering the serving sizes of foods you shouldn’t be eating too much of in the first place.

If you're unsure of your portion sizes, read Size Up Your Servings @ http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/FY/FY25800.pdf