Portion Control: How to Help Your Child Eat Less

Portion control is an important factor in the child obesity struggle. Taming out of control calorie intake can be challenging for parents.

I’m asked all the time by parents in my office what some effective ways are to help keep portion size down and reduce those extra calories.

Here are a few suggestions:

==>Don’t keep serving dishes on the table.

Put the food on their plate away from the table, preferably before your child sits down for their meal. Having the serving dishes in front of him sends a subconscious message that he should finish what he has because there’s more to eat.

==>Use smaller dishes and bowls.

This is a nice psychological tool that really works. Your child is more likely to overeat or feel unsatisfied when he sees a half-filled large plate than if he was given a completely filled small plate. Try this one on yourself!

==>Measure serving sizes once or twice a week.

It’s hard to measure serving sizes at every meal. This quickly becomes a chore and there is little chance you would do this long term. Measuring serving sizes occasionally is valuable so that you begin to get a sense as to how many calories and fat your child is consuming. It also gives you an idea as to what reasonable portions are in general.

==>Cut back slowly.

If your child is accustomed to having three servings of pasta, don’t take him right down to one. Take a little bit away at a time, and don’t do it right in front of him. Have his plate ready to go when he sits down at the table. Cut back too quickly, and he’ll feel deprived.

Michael P. Scaccia, MD, FAAP is a physician, child health expert, and author of “The Ultimate Parent Guide to Fitness and Nutrition”. From nutrition to fitness and beyond, this powerful, step-by-step guide is a must-have for concerned parents of overweight children. For more information, visit ==> http://www.UltimateParentGuide.com

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