I saw an interesting article on the Internet the other day which looked at how our meal portion sizes have changed over the past generations and throughout history. Old paintings like The Last Supper were studied and the meal portion sizes were analyzed and compared to meal sizes today.  Based upon this analysis, it was determined that the average American main course meal portion size has increased over 60% in the past millennium!  The size of our plates have also increased by the same amount.  Meanwhile, all our modern technology, i.e., cars, cell phones, computers, etc., has changed our lifestyles so that we burn MUCH less calories than prior generations.  It’s no wonder the percentage of overweight Americans approaches 70%. 

It’s simple math: If our daily energy intake (the number of calories we eat) exceeds our daily energy output (the amount of calories we burn), then our excess of consumption is going to catch up with us and cause us to gain weight.  The average adult needs to eat between only 1,500 and 2,000 calories a day. For those that are more active, 2,500-3,000 is typically sufficient.  If you have questions about your personal caloric intake and what you need to reach or sustain a healthy weight, I suggest you seek the advice of your personal physician or a dietitian who can evaluate your daily activity, age, height and weight to determine what your body requires. 

– Dr. Darren Soong