Understanding portion sizes

For many of us, working out how much food and drink to consume during the day can be a challenge, not least deciding what to give our kids too!

Whilst we may have a clear idea of what foods we want our families to eat, how much they should eat and drink in order to have a healthy, balanced diet is often less clear. 

To help you, we’ve gathered some helpful expert resources on portion sizes, as well as teamed up with the British Nutrition Foundation and Paediatric Nutritionist Ana-Kristina Skrapac to get their top tips on how to make sure your families are not only getting the right food, but just as importantly the right portion sizes each day.

Getting the right portion sizes for you

We’re all individuals with different needs.

For healthy adults the types of different foods and drinks we need are pretty much the same for all of us. But, the amount of food we need varies from person to person (80).

Here’s a handy guide from the British Nutrition Foundation, detailing each day what an adult can aim to eat from each of the food groups.

Additional resources from the British Nutrition Foundation are available below including a new blog with a helpful guide to portion sizes using your hands or a spoon, as well as a new quiz on adults portion sizes to help you get the right balance for you.

Expert advice: Blogs

If you want some helpful tips on portion size, read the blogs from our experts below:

Helena Gibson-Moore, Nutrition Scientist, British Nutrition Foundation

	Get portion wise – how much should you be eating? When cooking at home, do portion sizes cross your mind? Here’s the lowdown on adult portion sizes from the British Nutrition Foundation’s ‘Get portion wise’ campaign. Read the blog
	Top Tips on Portion Size Get portion wise when feeding your children with these top tips. Read the blog
	Portion Size: How much should you give you children? Read how the Eatwell Guide includes advice on the types and proportions of foods that should come from each food group to achieve a healthy, balanced diet.  Read the blog

Ana-Kristina Skrapac, Paediatric Nutritionist  

	How much is enough for my child?  Many parents have concerns about how much their children are eating and how to manage appetites, here’s some useful advice on teaching kids when they’re full. Read the blog
	Managing how much your kids eat and drink Check out this handy infographic with some top tips on how much to give your children through-out the day.  Read the blog

Test out your knowledge on portion sizes 

	Portion sizes for adults – quiz Think you know the right portion size for you? Test your knowledge with this quiz from the British Nutrition Foundation.
	Portion sizes for children – quiz Want to test what you’ve learnt about portion size for kids? Take our quiz!

Other helpful resources

	The British Nutrition Foundation The British Nutrition Foundation provides helpful resources such as: Get portion wise – full portion size list Get portion wise – putting it into practice What does a balanced diet look like for your kids?  Watch our video with the British Nutrition Foundation with some top tips on what a balanced diet looks like throughout the day for your child.
	The Eatwell Guide The Eatwell Guide shows how much of what we eat overall should come from each food group to achieve a healthy, balanced diet.
	Everyday portion planner This everyday portion planner by Love Food Hate Waste Scotland provides guidance on how much food you need per person and meal.

We hope our expert advice and resources help to take out some of the guess work when it comes to mealtimes!

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