Secrets to Portion Control

Here are some secrets to portion control to help you conquer the battle with overeating.

1. Before Eating, Divide the Plate: Simply put, 1/2 of your plate should contain fruit and or vegetables, while the other half can be left for lean proteins and whole grains. That is what a properly balanced meal should look like. Spaghetti and meatballs? Steak and potatoes? they're only half a meal, incomplete without fruit and vegetables, so slim down the starch/protein portion to make way for filling vegetables and fruits.
2. Pre-portion Tempting Treats: The bigger the package, the more you are likely to pour out of it. Example: measure out 1/2 cup of ice cream into a bowl for dessert. When you simply scoop until you think you have a decent amount, you could end up with a serving that is 4-5 times more than what the suggestion is on the package.
3. Limit Mindless Munching: Studies show that we tend to eat when we are distracted while eating. Try to limit eating while watching TV. We also tend to eat more when having conversations at the dinner table. Think warm bread or tortilla chips that are given at most restaurants prior to your entree delivery. We tend to mindlessly munch away at these items while in conversation, often never aware of how much we actually ate.
4. Down Size your Dishes: Dishes should be 8-10" in diameter. Many homes serve food on 12-14" dishes, which, of course, increases the amount of food that we put onto our plates.
5. Limit your Choices: The more options you have, the more you will want to try. In one study, researchers gave two groups jellybeans to snack on. One group got six colors neatly divided into compartments while jellybeans for the other group were jumbled together. Those given the mix ate nearly two times more!
6. Use Your Power for Good: Most homes have a "nutritional gatekeeper" who controls 72% of the food eaten by everyone else. The person who chooses food, buys it, and prepares it wields the power. If that's you, take advantage of it.
7. Avoid a "See-Food" Diet: Office workers who kept candy in clear dishes on their desks dipped in for a sample 71% more often than those who kept their candy out of sight.

Scary Food Shockers!

Before you read on, please know that the following information may be surprising to you! It certainly was scary to us when we came across it! Here are a few examples of some crazy nutritional counts....

• Marie Callenders' frozen chicken pot pie has 1,040 calories and a whopping 24 grams of saturated fat
• Olive Garden's Tour of Italy (a dish that comes with lasagna, chicken Parmesan, and fettucine alfredo) contains 1,450 calories and 33 grams of saturated fat. Add a breadstick and a serving of their salad with house dressing and you'll be at 2,000 calories for one meal!
• The Cheesecake Factory's Outrageous Chocolate Cake comes in at a whopping 1,550 calories, 32 tsp of sugar, and 43 grams saturated fat. And that's just for desert!
• A Starbucks Venti (large) cafe mocha (made with 2% milk and whipped cream) contains 410 calories and 10 grams saturated fat. This is comparable to "drinking" a McDonalds quarter pounder!
• Like Chipotle and Qdoba burritos? Well a chicken burrito ( tortilla, rice, pinto beans, cheese, chicken, sour cream, salsa) will set you back 1,050 calories and 17 grams of saturated fat. Hold the cheese and sour cream and you can save around 200 calories and 6 grams saturated fat.

Ways to slim down your favorite fast food items:

1. Customize on restaurant web pages. Many restaurants, fast food in particular, have nutritional calculators on their web sites. Create a meal on the web site, and then look for ways to improve it.
2. Reduce portion sizes. An order of the "tour of italy" from Olive garden is a lot of food to finish. Have large portions like these "cut in half" by putting half in a to go box right away. A chipotle burrito is also a lot of "bang for your buck". Try eating only half of the burrito, and saving the other half for later. Or, fill your burrito with healthy options like extra pico de gallo and lettuce, instead of the high calorie sour cream, cheese, and guacamole that they offer.
3. Drink plenty of water or another low calorie beverages before and during your meal. Sometimes hunger is disguised as thirst.
4. Ask the waiter or restaurant employee to list what items automatically come on the food that you are ordering if the menu doesn't list the items. Look to limit things like cheese, cream sauces, flavored butters, sour cream, and condiments like mayo.
5. Add or request extra veggies. This adds bulk to your meal and will help you feel more satisfied!

A smart eater is an informed eater! Keep your eye out for calorie laden items on the menu!

Apple Recipes

Here are two delicious Apple Recipes that you can prepare to celebrate fall!

Smoked Turkey and Apple Salad

Ingredients,Vinaigrette:
2 T. cider vinegar
6 T. olive oik
1 T. dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Salad:
1 bunch watercress
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
16 cherry tomatoes
10 oz. smoked turkey, coarsely chopped
2 C. vegetable oil
4 apples, peeled, cored and quartered

Preparation:Whisk together cider vinegar, olive oil and mustard. Add salt and pepper. Refrigerate until needed. Arrange watercress, carrot, tomatoes and turkey on salad plates. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy 1-quart skillet. When hot, fry the apples until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on paper towels to drain. Arrange apples on the plates and top all with the vinaigrette. Makes 4 servings.

Apple Avocado Salsa

Ingredients
2 unpeeled apples, cored and diced
1/2 ripe avocado, peeled and diced
1 Tbsp. diced green onion, including top
1 tsp. chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 tsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp. minced jalapeno pepper
1/4 tsp. minced garlic
Dash pepper

Makes 2-1/2 cups

Enjoy!

An Apple a Day Presentation

Click http://www.4shared.com/file/138319265/9db66e24/An_apple_a_day-1.html

to view the first presentation in the Simply Healthy BGSU wellness challenge series. The link will take you to a powerpoint presentation that presents information on the NEW food guide pyramid, and will also help to decode portion sizes and recommended daily intake of foods.

Since October is a month for apples, the presentation will also offer some benefits of this tasty seasonal fruit! Breast Cancer awareness is also briefly discussed.

For information on portions sizes, follow the following link :
http://www.dhss.mo.gov/diabetes/portionsizeguidelines.pdf