As handy as serving sizes are, they’re often misleading and can easily be misread and misinterpreted.
Here are 10 food servings sizes that are most often misunderstood, according to a group of 10 nutritionists.
1. A single serving of instant ramen is half the ramen ‘brick.’
2. One serving of raw almonds is only 12 of them.
3. Some brands of “healthy” ice cream split their pint into multiple servings in order
to advertise as “low-calorie.”
4. Cooking sprays measure servings by the amount of “spray time” and are easily confusing.
5. Olive oil is high in calories and it’s easy to overestimate the amount you’re using.
6. People rarely measure out the amount of cereal or granola they’re eating. Most serving sizes fall under one cup.
7. Sports drinks usually contain more than one serving in a single bottle.
8. The serving size of a banana is usually smaller than the size of most modern grocery store bananas.
9. A portion of chicken breast is usually much smaller than the breasts sold at grocery stores.
10. A serving size of peanut butter, 2 tablespoons, is not enough to make a sandwich.
