Portion control is an essential element of any effective dietary plan. Various studies have shown that our portions have increased over the years and also that where we are presented with more foods on our plates than we require most people will eat more without thinking of it. There are many reasons why our portions of food have increased e.g. due to increasing food availability and competition between food manufacturers and restaurants to sell more of their products. Our food portions can also be adversely affected by those around us. For example, some clients will report that their food portions increased when they first left home and ate with friends in school/ college, while others will describe the fact that their food portions increased after getting married/ starting to live with another person.
How can we begin to address portion size?
Firstly, the good news is that most clients will still feel satisfied when they eat less, although they may need to be convinced of this! For example, one study rated customer satisfaction following a pasta meal in a restaurant. Here some customers were served a standard portion while others were served a portion that was 50% larger. The study found that many customers served the larger meal ate nearly all of it consuming 720.13kJ more joules than those served the standard portion. Interestingly while those served a larger meal ate more of it, survey responses showed that customers rated the size of both portions as equally appropriate to their needs.
General tips to help clients reduce portion size
• Save your left overs and keep seconds out of sight. If you have cooked too much for a main meal avoid the temptation to overeat by distributing left overs into freezable containers to consume at a later date.
• Try eating a salad or vegetables before a main meal or making it a significant part of the meal (about half of the plate size). This will help you to feel fuller sooner as vegetables are low in KJ and also a good source of fibre which helps to fill us up.
• Snack foods can be high in kJ and can come in large portion sizes e.g. a large bag of tortilla chips or crisps can be almost as cheap as smaller counterparts. In view of this try to distribute full sized packages into smaller individual portion bags and containers.
• Watch your plate size. Our portion sizes have increased along with increases to our dinner plate size. You may wish to buy a smaller plate or a child’s plate to reduce your portion size. Also consider asking for child’s serving when eating out.
ENERGY DENSITY
As described above, portion size is a crucial part of weight control, however in addition to considering the portion of food we serve up, we must also consider the energy content of this portion (i.e. how many kilojoules the food contains). Here we need to consider the energy density of food items working on the principle that some foods provide more joules to volume than others e.g. fruits and vegetables have a high content of water and fibre and are low in fat causing them to have a much lower energy density than energy dense foods such as cakes and biscuits. By concentrating on energy density clients are therefore asked to consider what foods they eat as well as the amount they are eating.
Fats and energy density
It is impossible to consider energy density without giving consideration to the amount of fat in our foods. Fat itself provides around 9 kcls per gram which is over double the joules provided by protein and carbohydrate which provide around 4 kcals / gram. The increasing presence of fats in our diet has made this nutrient a major contributor to rising rates of global obesity.
Sources of fats in our diet.
Fats are found in foods such as butter, margarine, oils, meat, fish, nuts, seeds and processed foods.
There are three main types of fats in our diet:
• Saturated fats are found mainly in animal products and processed foods such as in meat, dairy, eggs, cakes, biscuits and pastries. Saturated fats do the most damage to our health as they are most related to the build up of unwanted LDL cholesterol in our arteries.
• Monounsaturated fats are found in olive oil, canola (rapeseed oil) and peanut oil and help to decrease LDL cholesterol levels in our blood
• Polyunsaturated fats are found in oily fish, vegetable oil, palm oil and products made from these. In small quantities polyunsaturated fats can help to decrease total cholesterol. The health effects of fats are covered in greater detail in other courses. As far as weight loss is concerned it is important for clients to realise that all fats have the same amount of joules and need to be restricted while restricting saturated fats in particular will be most beneficial to their health.
General tips to reduce fat:
• Reduce saturated fat e.g. butter, cream, fatty meats, cakes, biscuits and fried foods.
• Choose leaner meats where possible and trim off the visible fats before cooking.
• Select lower fat dairy foods e.g. skimmed/ semi skimmed/ half fat milk and reduced fat cheese such as edam, ricotta, cottage cheese and mozzarella.
• Beware of hidden fats in processed foods by checking out food labels for the fat content of foods and noting the presence of fats on the ingredients list. Remember here that fats are also known by other names e.g. as lard, coconut oil, palm oil, vegetable oil, whole milk solids, margarine, cocoa butter and animal shortening.
• Include some unsaturated fats in your diet in measured quantities e.g. olive oil, nuts, oily fish and avocado.
• Swap high fat salad dressings such as French dressing and mayonnaise with vinaigrettes or lemon juice.
Practical tips based on a client’s daily meal plan.
Breakfast
3 slices of toast with butter or margarine.
Cereal with full fat milk.
Tips: consider reducing the quantity of bread/ cereal eaten. Spread butter or margarine sparingly and add reduced fat milk to your cereal.
Lunch
Shop bought sandwich- bacon, lettuce and tomato with mayonnaise
Tips: if you eat lunch away from home try to plan for it the night before. Make sandwiches before you go to bed and choose lower fat fillings e.g. lean meat/ chicken and salad with a vinaigrette dressing. Other good choices include a thick soup with added vegetables and pulses with a fresh bread roll without any butter/ margarine added.
Dinner
Spaghetti in cheese sauce
Cake and ice cream
Tips: try pasta with a tomato sauce with added vegetables.
Include a side salad.
For dessert try fresh fruit with a low fat yoghurt topping.
Sugar and weight reducing
Along with advising clients to reduce the fat content of their daily diet it is also appropriate to advise on sugar reduction particularly as added sugar contains energy but has no other nutritional value. Sugar itself is found hidden in many of the foods and drinks we consume where it provides around 17 kJ/ 4063 calories per gram. Our daily intake of joules from sugar can be significant. For example, one study showed that the average Australian consumes more than 40 kilograms (90lbs) of sugar each year which is equivalent to around 22 teaspoons of sugar per day or 1.67kJ/ day.
As a weight loss consultant you can therefore help your clients by teaching them about the sugar content of foods and providing practical advice to help them to reduce their sugar intake. One way of providing advice is to use food models to show the sugar content of common foods by weighing out and adding the appropriate amount of sugar to a sealable container to be placed alongside the food concerned. For example, add 12-15 teaspoons of sugar to an empty container to show the sugar content of a 600ml bottle of coke and add 11 teaspoons of sugar (44g) too be placed next to a Mars bar.
Practical advice:
• Gradually wean yourself off sugar by reducing the sugar added to drinks and in cooking.
• Read food labels when shopping to identify hidden sugars although remember here that sugars are also known by a multitude of other names e.g. sucrose, fructose, dextrose, barley malt, honey, sorbitol, maltose and lactose.
• Use herbs and spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger to enhance the natural flavour of foods.
• Eat fresh fruit (in moderation) to satisfy sweet cravings.
• Use sugar substitutes in recipes and hot drinks instead of sugar e.g. those based on aspartame and saccharin, or preferably natural substitutes such as stevia and xylitol.
• Replace white sugar with more natural alternatives, e.g. brown sugar, honey, agave, maple syrup.
• Buy fewer ‘treat’ foods that are high in sugar such as biscuits, cakes, chocolate and sugary drinks.
• Beware of some reduced fat puddings/cakes and biscuits as sugars may be added to these products to compensate for any reduction in taste/ flavour.
