Meal Sizes Are 50 Percent Bigger Than 20 Years Ago, Expert Warns

Dr. Sally Norton, weight-loss expert and founder of online health hub "Vavistalife," said that food portion sizes have grown by 50 percent over the past 20 years.  In order to win the battle against obesity, she advised that meal sizes should be addressed.

"Chances are it's less to do with your actual hunger and more about your habits," Norton said in an article of the Daily Mail. "The fact is that most of us today are eating a great deal more than our parents or grandparents ever did."

Norton pointed out that meal sizes should be addressed as soon as possible because bigger food portions could be the norm in the future. She added that bigger meal sizes result to bulging waistline because the stomach stretches to accommodate big portions of food.

"But the good news is that by reducing your portion size, you can shrink the size of your stomach to some degree and train yourself to expect and want less food," she disclosed. She suggested that one of the effective tricks in taking smaller portions of food is by using smaller plates.

Aside from the increase in meal sizes, Norton also attributed the growing problem of obesity to the thriving fast food business. She said that the rise of convenience and processed foods means most people are now consuming meals with much higher calorie punch.

Norton's claims are correlated to the study conducted by the researchers of the University of North Carolina in 2013. According to ABC News, the study has found that food portion sizes have grown at fast-food places, restaurants and even in homes.

The study revealed that hamburgers have grown 23 percent larger; soft drinks have increased in size by 52 percent, a plate of Mexican food has gone 27 percent bigger, and snacks have expanded by 60 percent. Research pointed out that the increase in meal sizes is one of the reasons why adult obesity in America has been increasing over the past years.