Portion size is one of those terms you hear constantly when you’re on a restricted diet and it means nothing, really. Who can tell what a portion/serving is supposed to be? Some refer to packs of playing cards or your fist. Please.
I am notoriously bad at estimating volumes. Just ask my wife about how I always pick a too large container to store any left-overs.
So being volume-determinant challenged, as I think most people are, really, when it comes to judging what are proper food servings for various foods, I was intrigued to see a new product offering help, the PortionMate.
I asked for and received a review version of it, basically a set of BPA-free plastic rings sized to be portions of various foods such as fruits, meat and cereals.
I tried out the PortionMate and think it could help some people to measure out their portions more precisely. It is a bit messy to use since it leaves you with these food-touched rings, which measure from one to eight ounces. Depending on what the food is, washing could be a little challenging, although I suppose you could put them in a dishwasher.
I found the nutrition book that came with them almost more useful than the rings themselves. And I would have liked the rings better if they said on them what they were to be used for, in other words which is a portion of meat, which is vegetables, etc. You have to look that up, although I suppose you’d remember after repeated use.
They might be a little odd to bring to a restaurant too, where you really need the most help deciding when you’ve had an appropriate serving size.
But all that said, if you have trouble knowing when you’ve had required servings of various foods, these can help. For more information, check the website, PortionMate. The product retails there for $14.95 but when I checked recently, a holiday special 25 percent off was being offered.
John
The No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Journal 