pediatric housecalls Robert R. Jarrett M.D. M.B.A. FAAP

Eat All You Take: Portion Distortion

If you’re not actively thinking and pursuing appropriate growth with your kids you’re loosing ground. Why? Because EVERYONE else in the world is using your child for their own gain (yes, often even grandparents) and it’s nearly always the kid who looses – not in weight, they gain in that. No matter how much you “helicopter” you are not always with them and you’ve JUST GOT TO teach them some first-HAND “rules” to memorize so they can do it on their own. This video goes a little fast so you probably will need to watch it a couple times… fortunately, it’s short. Here’s Lewis First M.D..



Did you get all those “tricks” to give them a HAND over portion distortion?

– Food labels can’t be relied on
– Serve children on smaller plates, they’ll look larger.
– Dish out families food in kitchen on plates and bring them to the table, learn correct portion control.
– Don’t let children serve themselves out of “family-sized” bowls, they’ll always take too much.
– “Lend them a HAND,” teach them “rules of thumb” for portion control using their hand as an example. As it GROWS, so does the portion size.
– The FIST represents the portion size of rice, cereal, fruits or vegetables for a single meal.
– The size of the PALM represents the amount of protein, about 4 or 5 ounces, that should make up a DAILY serving size for a child or teen.
– The TOP OF THE THUMB’s FIRST JOINT represents the amount of mayonnaise, butter or salad dressing for a single meal.
– Eating at restaurant, wait to see what portion size comes for your child before ordering yourself so you can share theirs if it’s too large, or cut it in half and serve it as a second meal later on.
– Parents, you need to set a good example: if you don’t ask for seconds, your child won’t either.

Super, advice and tips.