Portion control products: Do they work?
Portion control products take the guesswork out of serving sizes. But whether they really prevent overeating depends on the individual.
A portion is a portion is a portion -- unless, that is, it's a giant, super, king or grande portion, in which case it's probably trouble.
Over the last 30 years, portions have grown by heaps and mounds in restaurants across the country and in many homes as well. During that same time, the waistlines of Americans consuming those mega-meals have grown more and more generous too -- to the point that now two-thirds of American adults are considered overweight.
Some companies say they've got what it takes to help turn both trends around and serve up svelte good health -- if not on a silver platter, at least on a microwaveable, dishwasher-safe plate.
A plate intended to give people the sad news about just how little they really ought to be eating.
These so-called portion-control plates -- with names such as the Diet Plate, EZ Weight Plate and Portion Doctor -- are marked into sections, or divided into compartments, designated to be filled with different types of food. There are large areas for vegetables and much smaller areas for everything else. The theory is that people will eat appropriate amounts when using the plates (some of them originally designed for people with diabetes) and learn to recognize, and reject, inappropriate amounts whenever they're tempted by them.
Portion-control products make sense, says John Hamberg, vice president of marketing for Portionpals in Port Washington, N.Y., which manufactures special cutting boards to help dole out portions. "Why is the nation getting fatter and fatter? They're overeating," he says. "We're telling them how to eat proper amounts."
No need to count calories, says Kay Illingworth, managing director of the Diet Plate, based in Glossop in the United Kingdom. "People only need use their eyes to slim."
To date, only one published study has tested a portion-control plate. When used properly, this study found, the plate promoted weight loss among people with Type 2 diabetes.
"If something as simple as a plate can do that, it's very significant," says study lead author Dr. Sue Pedersen, a specialist in endocrinology and metabolism at the universities of Calgary and Saskatchewan in Canada.
But not all nutrition experts think that something as simple as a plate or bowl can take a bite out of long-ingrained eating habits.
- TV on? Kids shun veggies Dec 09, 2003
- Obesity's Cause Has Experts at Odds Jun 11, 2003
- How you could be eating more and not know it Jan 14, 2008
