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How Much Food Should I Eat?

Portion Distortion

Cookies as big as frisbees. Muffins the size of flower pots. Bowls of pasta so deep, your fork can barely find the bottom. One reason people's waistlines have expanded over the past few decades is because food portions have too.


Portion sizes began to increase in the 1980s and have been ballooning ever since. Take bagels, for example: 20 years ago, the average bagel had a 3-inch diameter and 140 calories. Today, bagels often have a 6-inch diameter and 350 calories. One bagel that size actually contains half a person's recommended number of grain servings for an entire day!

The price of such overabundance is high. It's common knowledge that people who consistently overeat are likely to become overweight. But they also risk getting a number of medical problems, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, bone and joint problems, breathing and sleeping problems, and even depression. Later in life, people who overeat are at greater risk for heart disease, heart failure, and stroke.



Help Yourself: The Truth About Serving Sizes



But when it comes to foods that are high in calories, sugar, or fat, the serving size can alert you that you may be getting more than is healthy. Let's say you buy a 20-ounce bottle of soda and drink the whole thing at once. If the label shows the serving size is 8 ounces, not only did you have 2½ servings, you also had 2½ times the listed calories as well as 2½ times the sugar.



  1. fruits
  2. vegetables
  3. grains
  4. protein
  5. dairy

There's a website,, that offers guidelines to help people figure out how much of these foods they should eat based on age, gender, and activity level. [Please note: By clicking on this link, you will be leaving our site.]

Once we know the types of foods and quantities we should be eating, it's easier to figure out how much of that heaping plate of food our bodies actually need as opposed to how much they want. Instead of going along with what your school cafeteria or favorite restaurant puts on your plate, you can take control by eating only the amount you need.

The Divided Plate and Other Portion Tips





Portion-Control Tips


More tips for portion control:

  • Avoid taking an entire bag of chips or a container of ice cream to the couch. You're far less likely to overdo it if you serve yourself a portion in the kitchen first.


Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD
Date reviewed: June 2011