How Much Is A Food Serving Size?

Do you know how big a serving of rice should be? Or how many servings of carbohydrates you should eat each day? While we might be familiar with the mantra of ‘5 a day’ for fruit and vegetables, other food groups have their own recommended number of servings as well.

But even if you know how many servings of bread or dairy you’re supposed to eat each day, that doesn’t necessarily make it clearer if you don’t know how big a serving actually is or what a serving size looks like. The whole business of servings and servings sizes, not to mention portion sizes can be complicated.



However, once you understand what constitutes a serving, you can use this knowledge as a handy way of keeping your weight on track, especially if you don’t want the bother of counting calories.To help make it clearer to understand what a serving size looks like, I’ve compiled a chart showing some example serving sizes and how many you should aim to include in a healthy diet each day.

In each case, the recommended number of servings ranges from those with the least energy requirements to those with the highest energy requirements. For example, starchy foods and grains should account for 5 to 14 servings each day, so sedentary people should stick closer to 5 servings while those who are highly active should be nearing 14 servings.

Starchy Foods and Grains: These are important sources of carbohydrates and should form the basis of your diet, accounting for around one third of your daily food intake. Try to include 5-14 servings of this food group each day, especially wholegrains rather than the refined white variety.

Food	One Serving Equals
1. Bread	1 medium slice wholemeal bread
2. Cereal	3 heaped tablespoons breakfast cereal
3. Rice & pasta	2 heaped tablespoons (cooked)
4. Potatoes	1 small potato (egg sized)
5. Bagel	Half a whole-grain bagel
6. Sweet potato	Half a large baked potato
7. Tortilla	1 medium flour tortilla
Fruit and Vegetables: Eating a wide variety of fruit and vegetables provides an excellent source essential vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and can help improve overall health while warding off diseases. They’re also great when you’re dieting because you can eat lots of them, they fill you up and most have few calories. Aim to eat, at the very least, 2-3 servings of both each day.
Food	One Serving Equals
1. Tomatoes	1 medium or 7 cherry sized
2. Salad leaves	A regular sized cereal bowl
3. Cooked vegetables (broccoli, carrots)	3-4 heaped tbsp (cooked)
4. Corn on the cob	1 whole
5. Cucumber	5cm (2 inch piece)
6. Apple, pear, orange, peach, kiwi fruit	1 medium piece
7. Dried apricots	4 halves
8. Strawberries	7 medium sized
9. Satsumas, mandarins, clementines	2 fruits
10. Dried raisins or sultanas	1 tablespoon
11. Grapefruit	Half only
12. Melon	Half inch wedge
13. Grapes	A handful (15-20)
14. Fruit juice (100%)	150ml or 5 fl.oz.
Milk and Dairy: These are great sources of protein, vitamins, minerals and calcium to help keep bones and teeth healthy and strong. Stick to low fat or fat free varieties where possible and try to include 2-3 servings in your diet each day.
Food	One Serving Equals
1. Cheese (hard ie Cheddar)	40g (1.5oz.) matchbox size
2. Milk or soya milk	200ml (7.5 fl.oz) tall glass
3. Soft cheese (cottage, spread etc)	125g (small cup)
4. Low fat yogurt	150g (small yogurt pot)
5. Smoothie or milkshake	200ml (large mug or tall glass)
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Proteins: We need to eat protein each day as this essential nutrient isn’t stored in the body. Most people manage to eat some protein each day which is mainly sourced from meat and fish. Vegetarians can obtain their protein from nuts and seeds, beans, eggs and soya. Include 2-3 servings each day (5-6 ounces).
Food	One Serving Equals
1. Cooked poultry, lean red meat, fish	85-100g (3-3.5 oz.) deck of cards size
2. Dried beans (haricot, black eyed etc)	3-4 tablespoons uncooked
3. Eggs	2 medium sized
4. Peanut butter	2 tablespoons
5. Nuts and seeds	3 tablespoons
6. Shellfish (prawns, scallops)	100g (3.5 oz)
7. Tofu	100g (3.5 oz)
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Visualising what servings sizes look like can really help when it comes to serving up food. Rather than guessing what 3 ounces looks like, visualize an object which is similar in size. For example, a portion of rice or pasta is around the size of a tennis ball. A portion of cheese is similar to a matchbox. And for meat, chicken or fish imagine a deck of cards. You’ll find it far easier serving up the right amount.

Or better still, why not keep a handy visual guide in the kitchen, such as the Carbs & Cals: Count your Carbs & Calories with over 1,700 Food & Drink Photos! It contains over 1,400 photographs of popular food and drink items, clearly showing the amount of carbohydrate, calories, protein and fat in each photo, so you no longer need to play guessing games with serving sizes.

© Diets and Calories