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Do you eat a full can of soup? More than 1/2 cup of icecream?
Do you think those serving sizes are absurd?
A can of soup has 2.5 servings.
https://jezebel.com/5827211/the-absurdity-of-recommended-serving-sizes
The Absurdity Of Recommended Serving SizesIf you've ever downed a whole bag of Chex Mix then flipped over the bag and found that's about eight servings, you probably know serving sizes bear little relation to what people are actually eating. For years, consumer advocacy groups have been pushing the F.D.A. to change portion sizes, and now in an effort to light a fire under the agency, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has singled out some of the most ridiculous serving suggestions.The New York Times reports that the F.D.A. regulates what serving sizes food manufacturers can list on packages based on what a person would "customarily consume." The problem is this research was carried out in the 1970s, and back then the average American wasn't eating dinners that could feed a family of three.The Center for Science in the Public Interest says canned soups, ice cream, coffee creamers, and nonstick cooking spray are some of the worst offenders. Though most of us have drowned our troubles in an entire pint of ice cream at some point, the serving size is actually half a cup. A full pint contains an entire day's allowance of saturated fat. While people think Fat Free Original Coffee-mate is healthier than straight half and half, when the portions are equalized they have about the same amount of calories and saturated fat. PAM is able to advertise that it contains zero calories and zero fat because the serving is a fraction of a second spray. A full six second spray provides 50 calories and 6 grams of fat.The group's analysis of Americans' soup consumption is particularly thorough:Canned soup presents a dramatic example of how unrealistic the stated serving sizes are, according to CSPI. Labels for Campbell's Chunky Classic Chicken Noodle soup indicate a serving is 1 cup (a little less than half a can) and has 790 milligrams of sodium-a hefty amount by any standard and about half the sodium most adults should consume in a whole day. But according to a national telephone survey commissioned by CSPI, 64 percent of consumers would eat the whole can at one time and would consume 1,840 mg of sodium-more than a day's worth for most adults. Only 10 percent of consumers said they eat 1 cup portions.Similarly, CSPI's survey found that 62 percent of consumers eat the contents of the entire can of a (reconstituted) condensed soup like Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup. An entire can holds 2,390 mg of sodium-far more than the 890 mg listed for one serving. That amount of sodium only applies if one can is divided into 2? portions. Another 27 percent eat half a can at a sitting, so they get 1,195 mg.I actually was aware that you're not supposed to eat the whole can of soup in one sitting. I was saved from the perils of excess sodium consumption by reading the damn label. Though even if you do take a look at the packaging, it's clear Campbell's doesn't care about making its nutritional information clear. The portion size may be 2.5 servings, but no one in their right mind is saving a half cup of chicken noodle soup for a rainy day.However, the problem isn't entirely the food manufacturers. A large part of it is that portion sizes are out of control in the U.S.. Michael Jacobson, CSPI's executive director, says,"Over the years we've looked and laughed at many serving sizes, and these are some of the foods where the label serving is just so different from what people actually consume."Nutrition labels definitely need to be modified, but making them reflect what most Americans actually eat isn't the answer either. The key is to post reasonable serving sizes, not realisticportions. People may eat 18 Oreos at a time, not 3 as the box suggests, but Nabisco doesn't need to give that serving its seal of approval.The Problem With Serving Sizes [NYT]Unrealistic Serving Sizes Understate Calories, Sodium, Saturated Fat, Says CSPI [CSPI]
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Re: Do you eat a full can of soup? More than 1/2 cup of icecream?
I know. A can of coke used to be I think 1.5 servings and they made them change it.
I don't eat soup. But I can really put away the ice cream. I have been known to eat and entire Ben & Jerrys container of ice cream in one sitting on several occasions. Omg and rocky road!! I can eat way more than just a half a cup. More like 2 whole cups or more. Lol.
Landon * Kaydance * Kennedy
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I had that for the first time recently (not B&J just like Giant brand or whatever). I'd just never had the flavor before. OMG so good. best ever definitely.
I don't eat a lot of canned soups, but canned I always eat a whole can of a ready to eat soup. I do try to stick to about 1/2 a cup of ice cream, but it's occasionally 3/4-1 cup.
Portion sizes on some things do need to be revamped. Usually on bagged stir fry type meals-- those things usually say 3-4 servings per bag and it's not enough food for DH and me. We usually bulk it up with extra veggies.
DS - December 2006
DD - December 2008
I do not like canned soups....my DH will eat a whole can. My kids will split a can (between 2) but if its all 3, I open two cans of soup....those are lazy lunch days for me....or where I'm not feeling hungry type of days.
Icecream? I am fairly decent about giving my kids ONE scoop...which is about a 1/2 a cup. And now that I'm watching, I will only have a scoop. But I have been known to binge on a couple cups worth of ice cream in a sitting.
I wondered about serving sizes awhile ago.....are they assuming that if you have the standard serving of soup that you are also eating a whole salad or a half a sandwich or something with it? If so, then I can see it being realistic....but most people I know are eating the soup alone.....so yeah, not too realistic.
And EliseB...I know you have never posted pictures, but I'd lvoe to see a pre and post picture...how much weight have you lost since lapband?
I've lost about 100 pounds. I had some problems with the lapband last year and gained about 20 pounds back and have slowing been relosing that. More importantly, I have been able to cut out 1 diabetic drug, and more than half the blood pressure medicine I was taking. I also only need about 10% of the insulin I used to take.
I'm generally not a "pictures on the internet" girl due to some past nastiness from several people on these boards. But maybe someday I will have the courage to post pics.
That is AWESOME, Elise!!! I'm officially jealous. I need to lose about 100 lbs and I'm sooooo scared of failure!!! But I'm not going to quit.
If you ever do post pictures...even for a second...make sure its a day that I'm here!!!
Thanks! And good luck to you!
Generally speaking I think the nutrition information provided is leaps and bounds ahead of where it was just a few years ago. Sure, you have to read the label carefully to make sure you see what a "serving" really means. But for the most part, it is a lot more transparent what you're putting in your body.
I think it comes down to making sure you understand that just because they list a serving size, it doesn't mean that's what you should consume. E.g. we had some breakfast "treats" at work a while ago (mini muffins and mini scones). I looked at the nutrition information, which defined a "serving size" as three mini ___. I took that information, divided it by three and thought, "huh, not too bad for one scone--and that's all I need and want anyway." Someone else looked at the same information and said, "oh good, I can have three."
It was really interesting to hear that comment from her (sadly, it's someone that has battled her weight by doing gimicky things...).
MY biggest pet peeve lately is if you happen to use some sort of Hamburger Helper type dinner thing. I actually had an Annie's brand the other night of cheesy lasagna or something--add hamburger and water. There were two columns of nutrition info--one for "dry mix" and one for "as prepared." WTF?!? Who would eat it WITHOUT COOKING IT?!?!?! And if you're doing that, you likely couldn't care less about what you're actually putting in your body.
that's exactly the point being made in the thread on another board (that I first read this on). That you're supposed to have a serving of soup.. and a serving of vegetables or whatever.
Me too!! Now that I have my diet back on track, I do sit down for 1/2 cup of ice cream. Usually I just buy the little individual serving ice crea bars though.
I can't eat a full can of soup. They are really filling. I used to be able to finish around 1/2 a can, and since I heat it up in the microwave, I just poured what I thought I'd want into a bowl, and save the rest in the fridge. We used to keep canned soup around a lot, for days there were no leftovers for lunch. I've stopped doing that, just because of ACK! Sodium! EEK! BPA! I've got to stop reading the news.
1/2 cup of ice cream really is probably just about right for me. That's like one of those single serving containers right? Eating one of those seems about right to me. But when putting rocky road into a cone, I usually stack it really high. I have no idea what the volume is... probably at least 1.5 cups. But I feel really sick afterwards.
That sounds like a very tense way to live? Are you overweight? Or have a history of being overweight?
You don't buy like a pack of crackers or whatever? I'm trying to understand the 'nothing unless it's an individual serving' thing.
I do a lot of this. It's kind of the foundation of Weight Watchers, which is where I got it from. The only thing I don't like about it is buying things that are preportioned usually increases the costs dramatically and the extra packaging is so wasteful. You don't need 20 little bags of pretzels when you can just divide them up yourself, but it does involve more willpower that way, so I get why people do it.
I kinda wish I were you.
I would starve on 1/2 can of soup. In fact, I usually have the whole can and still need something with it? (I usually have a side salad or something, or a piece of fruit with it).
I do take 1/2 cup ice cream, though. I don't like a ton of ice cream, sometimes I just want a small taste.
I'm very portion conscious and constantly trade stuff off (going so far as to trade cake in the afternoon for dinner sometimes although that's also b/c I'm not longer hungry enough for both). It's probably just an issue of online tone. Just the poster sounded kind of distressed or something. Like she ONLY buys single portion stuff etc.
DH and I are big label readers. We often comment on what a serving size is. Does it change how much of a product we eat? Not usually. It just makes us more aware of what we are eating.
I do think that most serving sizes are WAY off track. I agree with True Norskie.
LOL. I know skinny people who eat like that. I always wonder if they're hungry when they're done eating. I know I would be.
I would eat the whole can of chicken noodle soup. But when we make tomato soup, we split it between our family because we're also eating grilled cheese sandwiches. We use really small bowls when we have ice cream, so we're probably right around 1/2 cup, maybe a little more. I'm sure I always have what they consider to be 2 bowls of cereal when I eat cereal.
So in general, I'd say portion sizes on most packaged food are not accurate, but I don't know if that's because I over eat, or if it's realistic to eat that little. Maybe my perception of portion is way off.
Charlotte Ella 07.16.10
Emmeline Grace 03.27.13
I agree with the posters that said single serving portions are helpful at curbing what is essentially binging....if I have a bag of Oreos in the house, DH and I (and the kids on a much smaller scale) can make it disappear in less than 48 hours. So he just brings home these tiny 2 packs of Oreos they have at his office once a week for the boys, that way they get their treat and I can lose the baby weight! It is definitely a WW mentailty, I did it two years ago and really learned a few things that were easily "countable" and quick to grab, so it makes it easier to keep track as I go through my day (I hate the new program, so I'm basically doing the old one in my head).
For me, I'm able to lose weight by doing the single serve portions, eating less at home, but when I go out I eat what I want (I eat lunch out 2 or 3 days during the week). Works for me.