Portion Control: The Key to Healthy Eating

Eating healthy is not just about what you eat. It is also about how much you eat. We can’t stress enough how much the diabetes diet should be balanced to manage blood glucose levels. But, if you’re trying to lose weight as part of your diabetes plan, you want to watch your calories, too. A good place to start? Check your plate.

Imagine that you divided your plate into three sections. Each section of the plate gets a food from one food group. Vegetables should get the most space – half, in fact. The other half is shared equally by protein and starches. By visualizing your plate this way, you will be able to make better food choices and prevent overeating. See what we’re talking about below by clicking on the meal that you would like to learn more about:

Tips on Portion Control

Here are some tips to help you manage your portion size:

• Three ounces of meat are equal to the size of a deck of cards or the palm of your hand
• One scoop of ice cream equals ½ cup of uncooked rice or pasta
• 1-½ ounces of low fat cheese is the same size as 4 dice
• Two tablespoons of low fat peanut butter is the size of as a ping pong ball
• A portion of nuts or pretzels equals a handful or 1-2 ounces.
• Make a fist. That’s about 2 servings of pasta or oatmeal.
• Even your guilty pleasures should be the right portion. Talk to your dietician about how much of your favorite desserts can be included in your meal plan.