PORTION SIZE CONTROL

As a dietary Assessment Tool

A term paper

Submitted to:

MARIA THERESA M. TALAVERA, DrPH

by

LEAH B. YAKIT, PhD Food Science Student

I. OVERVIEW

Nowadays, it is apparent that we are exposed to large portion sizes. Despite issues on our
country’s food security, every time we it eat whether inside our homes or outdoors when dining out
in restaurants, attending parties and the like, it seems that the quantity of food being offered to us
seems to get larger. Let’s consider food establishments offering “go large” on beverages, “extra rice
or unli rice” and the “eat all you can” promo. According to reports, portion sizes have been getting
bigger since the late 1970’s and has been accelerating ever since. It is now a routine driven by value
size pricing. Chronic exposure to large portion size plus “the more, the better” idea, distorted our
concept of what should be an appropriate amount to eat.
Our tendency to overindulge in food in response to large portion size is pervasive. It
transpires among all people regardless of their demographic characteristics. Exposure to large
portion sizes seems to entice anybody to overeat. Both men or women, rich or poor, fat or small, and
children and adults are all susceptible to overeating when provided with large amount of food.

PORTION SIZE VS SERV ING SIZE

Portion size is the amount of a single food item served in a single eating occasion, such as
meal or a snack. It is the amount offered to a person in a restaurant, the amount offered in the
packaging of prepared foods, or the amount a person chooses to put on his or her plate. In contrast,

LEAH B. YAKIT |HNF 223, First Semester 2017-2018 1

serving size is a standardized unit of measuring amount of food or drink such as one slice of bread
or one cup (8 oz) of milk that is used as a dietary guide.

THE ROLE OF LARGE PORTION SIZE TO DIETARY ASSESSMENT

Exposure to large portion sizes has been implicated as a key player in promoting greater food
and energy intake and is considered a risk factor for obesity. It has been linked with increased intake
in both children and adults, and across a variety of foods and settings. Yet, even with substantial
evidences linking large portion sizes to increase food consumption, there is still no established
mechanism that explain the causal role of portion size with obesity, given that energy intakes are a
function of not only the portion size of the food, but also its energy density and the frequency of
food and beverage consumption among other factors. Despite the absence of underlying principles,
portion size control has been recognized as an important behavioral element for weight control or
weight loss. In dietary assessment, the use of portion control is to estimate average intake of food
nutrients.

II. PORTION SIZE CONTROL

In many studies, portion size control as weight management tool has been employed in
laboratory and institutional setting using adult or children as participants of the study. It may use
varied foods for its measurement. There are several portion size control tool available for use.
Portion size control can be employed in combination with other intervention method to facilitate
weight loss and reduce the risk of obesity.

STUDIES IN MANIPULATING CONTROL SIZES

The observation that most people would consume more than the appropriate amount of food
when confronted with large portion sizes which is seemingly rampant for both adult and children in
any occasion lead to the conduct of many studies. These studies employed manipulation of control
sizes in a number of settings, including laboratory and field trial, with a variety of food such as
amorphous foods, pre-packaged snacks, single unit foods and beverages. It includes the following
method:

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 Acute studies (<24 h). This kind of study is done in less than 24 hours by either (1)
increasing the portion size of snacks or (2) increasing the portion size of a meal. Issue on its effect
on the next meal session however is in question.
Increasing portion size over 24 hour or longer. The issue on whether the effects of
consuming a large portion size would be sustained or compensated for in the future eating occasion
may be address by this method.
Reducing food portion sizes. Employing this type of method attempts to answer the
effectiveness of reduced portion sizes on reducing energy intakes
UPDATES AND DEVELOPMENT ON PORTION SIZE CONTROL

A. Although both children and adult are prone to be lured towards overeating in response to
seeing large quantity of food, children and adolescent are believed to be less disciplined or displays
less control and in the amounts of food they serve and consumed therefore, Robinson and Matheson
presented five potential promising environmental strategies for improving portion control in
children. These are the following:
1. Using tall, thin lower volume glasses and mugs;
2. Using smaller diameter and volume plates, bowls and serving utensils;
3. Using plates with rims;
4. Reducing total television and other screen watching; and
5. Reducing or eliminating eating while watching television and/or other screens.

B. In order to facilitate, control in the amount of food consumption, portion control tools are
designed and are commercially available. Portion Control Tools are instruments usually tableware
and serving utensils that could potentially provide a practical strategy to control food intake

All in one portion pot Color-coded measuring utensil set

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 Serving utensil set Guided crockery set
A novel portion control plate (shown below) was developed. It was specifically design
incorporating the Delboeuf illusion and portion size indicator to aid in portion control. The three
large circles in the center of the plate are the portion indicator, while outside of the plate are
circumscribed smaller circles which create the Delboeuf illusion.

Portion control tools were found to be acceptable, easy to used and with similar perceived
effectiveness. These tools could be used to explore casual mechanism of the portion size control in
relation to learning the correct portion to consume, in weight loss management and in studies
regarding obesity.

Underlying the developments of these portion control tools are knowledge on visual cues and
other external factors that affects the amount of food consumption. Examples of these are given:

 Tall thin containers holds more than short wide containers of the same volume (as
observed by Piaget.

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  Visual perceptions on portion sizes appear to depend on the relative difference
between the size of the food portion and the size of the plate or bowl upon which the
food is served.

 Delboeuf visual illusion – a circle appears larger when circumscribed by a larger

circle and smaller when circumscribed by a much larger circle.

 “Clean your plate” effect. In many culture, it is customary to eat up all that you put in
your plate. It is exemplified by saying that “ finish all your food, or else God will
punish you” or “ there are many children that go hunger everyday and you are just
wasting food”.

 Packaging and portion sizes shift our consumption norms and expectations.

C. Portion control tool as an intervention in weight management is also used in combination

with other intervention techniques. In the study of Huber JM, et.al.(2015) portion plate control was
coupled with telecoaching. Telecoaching involves telephone counseling on lifestyle modification. It
has been associated with positive behavior changes such as increasing physical activity, improving
nutrition and significant weight loss.

III. LIMITATION OF PORTION SIZE CONTROL

The use of portion size control in dietary assessment is limited on the following factors:

1. sample size

2. sample demographics

3. duration of study

4. sustainability of effect in natural setting

5. sustainability of effect in the long run; and

6. prone to biases and confounding factors

III. CONCLUSION

Portion size control is useful in weight management program. With its development,
using Portion Size Control as a dietary assessment tool in investigating causal link between
portion size, food intake, energy intake and obesity is a promising idea.

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REFERENCES
1. MBE Livingstone and LK Pourshahidi. Portion Size and Obesity. American Society for
Nutition Adv Nutr 5: 829-834. 2014; doi 103945/am114007104
2. TN Robinsons and DM Matheson. Environmental Strategies for Portion Control in Children.
Apettite 88: 33-38. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2014.12.001
3. E Almiron-Roig, A Domiguez, D Vaughan I Solis-Trapala and SA Jebb. Acceptability and
potential effectiveness of commercial portion control tools amongst people with obesity.
British Journal of Nutrition, 2016. 116: 1974-1983. doi:101017/S0007114516004104
4. JW Hughes, CM Goldstein, C Logan, JL Mulvany MAW Hawkins AF Sato and J Gunstad.
Controlled testing of novel portion control plate produces smaller self-selected portion size
compared to regular dinner plate. BMC Obesity. 2017. 4:30; doi 10.1186/s40608-017-
0167-z
5. JM Hber, JS Shapiro, ML Wieland, IT Croghan, KSV Douglas, DR Schroeder, JC Hathaway
and JO Ebbert. Telecoaching plus a portion control plate for weight care management: a
randomized trial. Trials. 2015. 16:323. doi 10.1186/s13063-015-0880-1

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