Restaurant portions are out of control.
Your next meal out could probably feed a family of four. A
survey in the journal Obesity found 76% of the chefs
surveyed claimed they served "regular" portions. Yet when
the servings were actually weighed and measured, the plated
portions were 200-400% larger than the servings recommended
by the USDA! 400%!
But who doesn't appreciate generous restaurant portions?
Your waistline (and your heart), that's who.
Brian Wansink, PhD, is an expert in the psychology of why
we overeat. His infamous experiment proves we eat with our
eyes and not our stomachs. His team arranged for a bowl of
soup to be constantly refilled from the bottom without
telling the participants. Inevitably each person continued
eating the equivalent of several portions.
Moral of the story? Since the bowl didn't get empty their
brain didn't register fullness and they kept eating.
And as if eating a whole family serving at once weren't
enough, consumers are woefully under educated on the
calories they're shoveling in:
* Outback Aussie Cheese Fries appetizer weighs in at a
whopping 2,900 calories!
* Denny's French Toast Slam breakfast tips the scales at
nearly 1,200 calores!
* PF Chang's Orange Peel Beef with a side of fried rice
totals an incredible 3,100 calories!
* Ruby Tuesday healthy sounding Chicken & Broccoli Pasta
will cost you over 1,680 calories!
* Carl's Junior's Monster Thickburger, Fries & Shake racks
up an amazing 2,710 calories!
Think you'll fare better at a "healthier" restaurant? Not
necessarily. According to the Journal of Consumer
Research, diners requested up to 131% more calories in
sides, drinks and desserts at Subway (remember Jared) than
at McDonald's -- even though the Subway main choice
actually had more calories to start.
What's a savvy consumer to do? Enjoy your dinner and be
calorie smart with these tips:
* Check the restaurant's website for nutritional info for
calories, carbs and/or sodium before you go.
* Call ahead and ask if they allow substitutions so you
can order grilled veggies instead of the curly fries.
* Balance calories by ordering an appetizer to share plus
a salad with mineral water as your meal.
* Automatically save half the calories by splitting the
meal in half for lunch the next day
* When ordering grilled fish or veggies, ask that no
butter or oil be used to save 100 calories.
Over 30% of Americans choose dinner at the last minute,
which may result in crummy nutritional picks according to
recent studies.
Don't be a statistic. Visualize your portion. You're in
charge. Choose smart.
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Heidi Diaz is the founder of the popular
http://www.kimkins.com weight loss website and has written
extensively about weight loss issues for more than 10 years.
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