1. Portion Control, Sugar Content and Reading Food Labels
Samantha Gealoris
Virginia Tech Dietetic Intern
January 23, 2012

2. Portion Control

3. Portion Distortion Quiz
Today portion sizes are very distorted. A portion today is completely different from a portion 20 years ago. Large portion sizes are one of the main factors causing obesity and nutrition related diseases. So we are going to do a Portion Distortion Quiz. I am going to show you a portion from 20 years ago and then I am going to show you a portion of the same food today.
Portion Distortion Quiz taken from Choose My Plate:

4. Bagel 20 years ago Today 3 inch diameter 140 calories 6 inch diameter
How many calories are in today’s bagel?

5. How many calories are in today’s fast food burger?
Cheeseburger
20 years ago
Today
333 calories
590 calories
590 calories
How many calories are in today’s fast food burger?

6. 1 cup spaghetti with sauce and 3 small meatballs
20 years ago
Today
500 calories
1025 calories
1025 calories
How many calories are in today’s serving of spaghetti and meatball dish?

7. How many calories are in today’s serving of soda?
20 years ago
6.5 ounces
85 calories
20 ounces
500 calories
500 calories
How many calories are in today’s serving of soda?

8. How many calories are in today’s serving of french fries?
20 years ago
Today
210 calories
610 calories
610 calories
How many calories are in today’s serving of french fries?

9. How many calories are in today’s Turkey sandwich?
20 years ago
Today
320 calories
820 calories!
820 calories
How many calories are in today’s Turkey sandwich?

10. How many calories are in today’s serving of Chicken Caesar Salad?
20 years ago
Today
390 calories
790 calories
790 calories
How many calories are in today’s serving of Chicken Caesar Salad?

11. MyPlate illustrates the five food groups that are the building blocks for a healthy diet using a familiar image—a place setting for a meal.
It helps consumer focus on key behaviors:
Enjoy your food, but eat less.
Avoid oversized portions.
Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk.
Make at least half your grains whole grains.
Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread, and frozen meals—and choose foods with lower numbers.
Drink water instead of sugary drinks.

12. Daily Recommendations
Fruits
Girls ages 14-18
1 ½ cups
Boys ages 14-18
2 cups
low in fat, sodium, and calories
sources of many essential nutrients
contain Vitamin C
Vegetables
Girls ages 14-18
2½ cups
Boys ages 14-18
3 cups
Fruits are naturally low in fat, sodium and calories
They are sources of many essential nutrients like potassium, fiber, vitamin C, and folate.
They also contain Vitamin C which is important for growth and repair of all body tissues, helps heal cuts and wounds, and keeps teeth and gums healthy.
Most vegetables are naturally low in fat and calories.
They are important sources of many nutrients including potassium, fiber, folate, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
They contain Vitamin A which keeps eyes and skin healthy and helps to protect against infections.
low in fat and calories
sources of many nutrients
contain Vitamin A

13. Grains Protein Dairy (milk)
Girls ages 14-18
6 ounces
Boys ages 14-18
8 ounces
Protein
Girls ages 14-18
5 ounces
Boys ages 14-18
6 ½ ounces
Dairy (milk)
Girls ages 14-18
3 cups
Boys ages 14-18
Grains:
1 oz of grains would be the equivalent to a ½ cup of pasta or about ½ the size of a baseball
Protein:
1 oz of meat would be the size of a deck of cards
Dairy:
Low fat or fat free milk is recommended.

14. Take home points
Make half of your plate fruits and veggies.
Make at least half of your grains whole grains.
Vary your protein food choices Choose lean or low-fat meat and poultry.
Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk.

15. Sugar Content

16. How many tablespoons of sugar are in this 20 oz bottle of Fanta?

17. Sugar Content in Beverages
Mountain Dew (20oz): 77g sugar= 6 ¼ tablespoons
Fanta Orange Soda (20oz): 74g sugar= 6 tablespoons
Pepsi (20oz): 69g sugar= 5 ½ tablespoons
McDonalds Frappe' Mocha (12oz): 62g sugar= 5 tablespoons

18. Putting Things Into Perspective
Worst Bottled Tea: SoBe Green Tea (1 bottle)
61g sugar= 4 slices Sara Lee Cherry Pie
INSTEAD TRY: Honest Tea Green Dragon Tea
Worst Energy Drink: Rockstar Energy Drink (1 can) 62g sugar= 6 Krispy Kreme Glazed Doughnuts
INSTEAD TRY: Monster Lo-Carb
Taken from “Drink This, Not That!” by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding.

19. Worst Soda: Sunkist (1 bottle)
84g sugar = 6 Breyers Oreo Ice Cream Sandwiches
INSTEAD TRY: Izze Sparkling Clementine
Worst “Juice”: Arizona Kiwi Strawberry (1 can)
81g sugar = 7 bowls of Fruit Loops
INSTEAD TRY: Fuze Slenderize Strawberry Melon

20. What is the best drink for me?
WATER
We really want to try and stay away from sugary drinks like the ones mentioned before. Try some of the substitutes. The best thing to drink is water. Keeps our bodies functioning properly, keeps our skin looking healthy, prevents dehydration.

21. Reading Food Labels

22. Check the serving size and number of servings.
Calories count, so pay attention to the amount.
Know your fats and reduce sodium for your health.
Reach for healthy, wholesome carbohydrates.
Choose lower fat proteins.
Look for foods that are rich in these nutrients.
Serving Size:
The Nutrition Facts Label information is based on ONE serving, but many packages contain more.
How many servings are in this container of macaroni and cheese? 2
What is one single serving size? 1 cup
Calories:
How many calories are in one single serving? 250
How many calories are in the whole container? 500
Fats, cholesterol and sodium:
Select foods that are lowest in saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol. Consume as little trans fat as possible. It is the worst fat for you and can lead to heart problems long term. We also want to limit saturated fat.
Replace saturated and trans fats with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats found in fish, nuts, and liquid vegetable oils.
CHO:
Healthy sources, like fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains, can reduce the risk of heart disease and improve digestive functioning.
Look for whole grain products such as whole wheat, brown rice, or whole oats.
Sugars are a type of CHO. We want to limit foods with added sugars which add calories. Make sure that added sugars are not one of the first few items in the ingredients list. Like we talked about before with the sugary drinks.
Proteins:
When choosing proteins, such as meat, poultry, dry beans, milk and milk products, make choices that are lean, low-fat, or fat free.
Vitamins and Minerals:
Increasing these nutrients will promote good health and may protect you from disease.

23. Take home point
Every individual is different and therefore has different calorie, carbohydrate, protein and fat requirements.
Age, gender, exercise and stress level
Age, gender, exercise and stress level all influence nutrient needs.
Follow the my plate guidelines for more well balanced meals to promote excellent health and prevent future nutrition related diseases.

24. Wrapping things up
Portion sizes today are very distorted
Use the MyPlate method for a healthy, balanced diet
Avoid sugar-filled drinks and drink plenty of water!
When reading food labels be aware of portion sizes, calories and good vs. bad fats
Pick foods that are high in vitamins and minerals

25. Questions?

26. References
Choose My Plate: ker-tools/portion-distortion.html
Drink This, Not That. David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding: worst-drinks-america-2010
Portion Distortion Quiz taken from Choose My Plate.
Drink This, Not That book by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding referenced on Men’s Health Website.