PortionWatch

Sorry for the hiatus

2009-09-20T07:56:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to say that portion watch will return as I collect more and more photos of deceiving portions and their insane calorie amounts. I believe it is very important to make people aware of just how much they are eating. It is very easy to be unaware of the insane caloric, fat, sodium, sugar... contents of the foods we eat. It is also very easy to eat what is in front of you instead of what constitutes a healthy portion.

Thanks to all readers, and check back soon.

Piiggen Out

2007-10-06T08:39:00.000-04:00

One of the best brands of ice cream on the market today has to be Haagen Dazs. Mentioned as jokes in Simpsons episodes and "Harold and Kumar go to White Castle". Almost everyone at some point has opened a container and started eating, only to get to the bottom all to quickly.

Of course everyone has to realize there is a reason it is so delicious. Haagen Dazs cuts no corners providing that high quality taste. So exactly what is a portion size here?

Half a cup... but that nets you 40% of your daily cholesterol!

Yeah this ice cream takes no prisoners. One serving provides a significant part of your daily fat. Considering most people are having this as a dessert after some other fatty meal, its easy as hell to go over the limit, and quite tasty too.

Vitamins and Minerals

2007-09-21T19:14:00.000-04:00

I really do love these vitamin waters. They are thirst-quenching, trendy, delicious, energizing, and so forth. They come in a variety of exciting flavors, most of which are exotic or delicious blends of fruits that other juices won't touch.

Vitamin waters are the second bottled drink to be featured here. Just because it COMES in a bottle, doesn't mean you get to drink the whole bottle, or does it? Surely no harm can come from downing a whole one?

Whats the actual serving size of a 20oz bottle of Vitamin Water?

One bottle represents two and a half servings!
Now, this isn't called vitamin water for no reason. The good folks at Glaceau have to put SOMETHING in this bottle given that it contains less than 1% fruit juice.

Drinking this entire bottle will only add 125 calories and 10% of your daily sugar to your tally for the day. A list of the vitamins and minerals found therein is broken down both by serving and by bottle.

Enjoy.

Candy from another Land

2007-09-08T15:47:00.001-04:00

Here is a real treat... literally. These Cadbury bars hail from the United Kingdom of Great Britain, and right off the bat you can see a lot of differences between their displays and our own.

No there isn't some creepy metric version of calories that they count in other parts of the world. In fact, the 2,000-2,500 calorie guidelines are just as prevalent over there. I think its neat the way Cadbury prints how many kilojoules of energy are in various serving sizes. According to this page you expend 10 joules of energy when you lift 2.2lbs about a meter off the ground.(Read some info about joules and energy by clicking here)

Their "GDA" (guideline daily amount) system looks very similar to what we use. The %s here are listed to make it easy to figure out how much of your GDAs this candy bar represents. Gotta love the warning "to be enjoyed as part of a healthy lifestyle".

I was hungry when I tore into this bar (the one that isn't opened here I had just borrowed for the pictures). Granted, I only ate half the bar in one sitting, and half the next day. Seems that was right on the money too.

Hot Italian Sausage Fest

2007-09-04T19:47:00.000-04:00

I love sausage (the food). On top of pizza, in tomato sauce, or alongside Italian favorites, sausage is just plain fantastic. I find the johnsonville sausages to have an especially good flavor, and until I get the sausage making attachment for my kitchenaid mixer, I'm going to continue to buy these babies from the store.

Of course any food that can be described by the phrase "more unhealthy than bacon" should be treated with caution. So what portion size should these sausages be consumed in?

One sausage, but watch the numbers.
Its not so much the calories that are a killer, at 270, a single sausage isn't a nail in the coffin. But, with two "over-30" percentages for sodium and fat, eating sausage in moderation ensures that you yourself will LIVE to be over-30. Personally I eat about two and a half sausages as an accompaniment to lasagna, so I'm getting 2/3rds of fat and sodium right there.

Eating a 5 pack ensures you'll never get a 6 pack.

This could curl your toes...

2007-08-26T09:43:00.000-04:00

How about a nice snack? I've always wondered about the snack pack sizes vs the regular bags of any particular snack. So lets stack them up side by side. Some companies provide a very honest single serving size, while others are deceptive and trick you into consuming more.

How many servings is a "single serving" size of cheese curls?

How kind! The single serving really is a single serving.
Not to say that cheese curls are by any means an IDEAL snack, but at least you can grab a snack size bag with confidence that you are indeed consuming only one serving of cheese curls.

Do notice, however, that the measured size of a portion on the "small" bag is 7/8 of an ounce, while a serving in the large back is one full ounce. That extra 1/8th of an ounce will give you 20 more calories and an extra 2% of your daily fat.

The musical fruit.

2007-08-24T21:12:00.001-04:00

Splitting a can of beans with one person can have more than just explosive results. This staple of American cuisine has been a classic for decades, and few do it better than Bush. But just how much is too much?

Better split that can a few extra ways because there are almost 4 servings of beans in this can. Of course if you are enjoying these beans alongside some hot dogs... well watch out!

The most important meal of the day!

2007-08-24T07:08:00.000-04:00

Yes breakfast really is the most important meal of the day, and what better way to start it than with this breakfast classic! Eggo waffles are a staple of American food and an iconic treat that is great morning, noon, or night.

How many eggos are in one serving? What if you eat more than one?

Two waffles, not bad.
As you can see here, the good folks at eggo have broken the info out by serving (2 waffles) and by individual waffle so you the consumer get the chance to multiply out your intake.

Of course what isn't covered is the details for when you inevitably add butter and syrup (or ice cream, or caramel, or whatever) to these sugary treats. Take note of the serving sizes of these other add-ons before soaking your eggos in them.

Brain food or fat food?

2007-08-14T20:44:00.001-04:00

I do believe breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and I often like to start it grand. Usually at work, I'll bring in some cream cheese and salmon, and buy a bagel from one of the local places. Since I like to get lunch later in the day (I can't STAND wasting half my lunchbreak standing in a line) I need the extra oopmh in the morning. Plus, I usually take long walks on my lunchbreak to get some exercise and break up the day.

Anyways, I was always curious how many calories I was taking in for this one...

Assuming 300 calories for the bagel, 250 calories in the salmon, and 175 in the cream cheese, I'm clocking in about 725 for the trio. Add to that my large coffee (cream, of course) and thats about 40% of my daily for one meal. I sure hope I burn that off during those long days in the office...

Potato Chips - the full size bag.

2007-08-12T08:40:00.000-04:00

Eventually, potato chips HAD to make an appearance. A ubiquitous snack in the American diet, and a hit the world over, potato chips are featured almost everywhere there is comfort food. They almost have their own aisle in the grocery store, and they have many accompaniments, dips, toppings, and so on.

So how many chips is one portion? A bowl? A handful? One?

11 chips! One for each finger and one extra to savor.

I'd like to meet the person who is able to stop at just 11 chips. Coming in around 15% of your daily total fat, 11 chips makes up a significant part of a daily allowance. Indeed anything over that could warrant enough nasties to replace a meal without any of the nutrients.

As far as junk food is concerned, this staple is a chip off the old block.

Honesty in Advertising (Iced Tea)

2007-08-11T12:53:00.000-04:00

So many delicious foods require something nice to wash them down with. A good iced tea is a fantastic year round complement to any of the dishes featured on this site. Surely since they come prepackaged in those nifty bottles, its easy to tell just how big one portion is right?

So how many servings is this bottle of iced tea?

Who shares these things? Two servings! I hope you have a dixiecup, or don't care about sharing the bottle.

Yeah, like many packaged drinks, the bottle isn't a serving. You have to read carefully to see just what you are getting. Unlike most other brews, this hones-tea stuff is more natural, and uses higher quality ingredients. At 30 calories per serving, you are still coming WAY beneath what you would if you guzzled its competitors in their entirety. Honest Tea has a very smooth and light flavor. Still though, save half for your next meal if you want to adhere to the serving sizes.

Honey BBQ Wings!

2007-08-11T12:46:00.000-04:00

These babies go VERY well as a side to the pizza we reviewed earlier. Nothing like wings and pizza to make a nice dinner. Of course chicken does have protein, and the honey bbq glaze isn't nearly as spicy as say a buffalo sauce -- especially since there is no blue cheese involved.

So what portion size do you think is appropriate to accompany a pizza? (Most pizza places give about 10-12 wings in their standard sizes.)

Nope, that isn't a typo... 2 measly wings. That means one serving = one bird.

OK be honest here, who the hell eats just two wings?!?! Its hardly even worth powering up the oven to cook these babies if you only get to eat two of them.

Personally, I eat about 6 at a time. That means I am getting 45% of my daily fat, 69% of my sodium, and a semi-respectable 66% of my daily protein. That by itself isn't so bad, but if you combine it with the entire Totinos combination pizza, you are going way over your daily allotment for several baddies. Its well over a 1,000 calorie dinner, before dessert has even been considered.

Talk about a wing and a prayer!

Apple Crisp - Dessert or Death?

2007-08-11T10:07:00.000-04:00

Fancy a lovely dessert? Apple Crisp makes a perfect summer dessert after those Barbecues and cookouts. This particular brand of crisp is especially nice, and simple to make. You just have to cut loads of butter into the crumb topping, slice up a few apples, and bake it for a while. To be fair, it came out exceptionally well, especially when we added some whipped cream on top.

So how large is a serving of apple crisp?

Yeah, 1/8th the container... unlikely!

I think we managed to make this particular dessert last 6 servings, so we weren't too far off the mark. Be careful when you read that nutritional information. Its separated out by what is in the mix, vs how it is when prepared.

Wonder how bad it is alongside a dish of ice cream?

Totinos Combination Pizza

2007-08-11T09:55:00.000-04:00

Lets start out with one of my favorite quick dinners, a Totinos Combination Pizza. They are relatively inexpensive, quick and easy to cook, very filling, and they hit the spot after a rough day. One box... it HAS to be one portion right? In many restaurants, the "personal pizza" is about the same size right?
What do you think the serving size of this personal pizza is?

HALF a pizza! Thats right, there are 2 servings in this box.
The nutritional information looks acceptable until you realize that if you eat the whole pizza, you need to double all the numbers! This baby will give you 78% of your daily sodium and 60% of your daily fat!

So unless you are as active as our webslinging friend featured on the box, this could end up being a disaster!

Welcome to PortionWatch!

2007-08-11T08:19:00.000-04:00

This blog provides a service to all those who have been misinformed about portions and portion size. To all those who wondered why their eating plans were not working, and to all those who trust the food providers to tell you what a portion really is.

So many of our favorite foods come in containers that SEEM to be one serving... in many cases they are not. Journey with me and we'll expose some of these tricky treats for the sizes they really are!