What to Make of Portions and Serving Sizes?

By: Christina Bartlett

What to Make of Portions and Serving Sizes?

Portions differ for all ages. The trick is learning how much to serve your child. Reading labels can help, but serving sizes do not always equal the amounts you or your child may have. A serving size on a label may be adequate for you, but may be too much for your child.

A portion is how much food you choose to eat. A serving is a standard amount set by the U.S. Government, or sometimes by others for recipes, cookbooks, or diet plans.  You can always use the USDA Food Guide Pyramid as a nutritional guide to eating healthier.

Preschoolers and Younger School-age Portion Sizes (4-8 yrs old)

A good guideline is that portion sizes should be about a third of an adult portion size.

Examples of portion sizes:

• 1/2 slice of bread
• 1/2 cup of dry cereal
• 1/2 cup of cooked vegetables
• 1/2 piece of fresh fruit
• 1/2 cup of yogurt
• 1/2 cup of low-fat milk
• 1 egg
• 1 ounce of meat

Portions Sizes for Older Children

Older children and teens begin to approach portions that for adults. Sometimes this means that these kids begin to eat oversized portions, just like many adults do.

Examples of portion sizes:

• 1 slice of bread
• 1 cup of dry cereal
• 1/2 cup of cooked vegetables
• 1 piece of fresh fruit
• 1 cup of yogurt
• 1 cup of low-fat milk
• 1 to 2 eggs
• 2 to 3 ounces of meat

Other tips to help you and your child from overindulging:

• If your child still wants more food after serving a balanced dinner, always offer more fruit and /or vegetables. These are low in calories, good source of fiber and low in fat.

·       Buying healthy, portioned out, snacks.

• Make sure to read labels and make your own snack bags of healthy items.

·       When dining out, make sure to order from the kids menu. If you’re able, order a side item of vegetables for your child and limit the fries as a side item.

Always remember to add variety by choosing foods from all the food groups and making sure your child tries new foods weekly. This will make them more apt to eating more fruits and veggies and consume fewer calories.