"survey" news and stories

The single biggest factor that prompts people into overeating is portion size, and when more and more meals are eaten outside of the home, it is restaurant portion size that can cause a problem. Not only are the portions often huge, but they set a benchmark that distorts what people perceive as an appropriate amount of food.

An obesity researcher at Penn State University had 300 chefs from fine and casual dining restaurants take a survey that asked what things influence what size they make their portions. 4 out or 5 served more than the recommended portion sizes. 70% said that presentation was the biggest concern, getting a "wow" factor into the dining experience that might cause a customer to return. Value and portion size are often connected in the minds of the consumers, so larger servings come into play more than the actual plating. 65% said that cost influenced how much food they served, and 52% cited "expectations, which was primarily true of chain-restaurants and categories (like steakhouses, for example) that are known for being generous. Only 16% considered calories.

Chefs are not necessarily dieticians and their job is not to tell you what to eat or how much of you plate to clean before taking the rest home. It does make you wonder, however, if our priorities and theirs are in the right place when a 1-pound "serving" of pasta starts to look normal.

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While in Britain they may have a hard time giving up potato chips as a favorite snack, not everyone is eating so unhealthily. In Canada, a recent study determined that the number one snack is fresh fruit and noted that it was chosen over other snacks about 20% of the time. The next most popular snack foods, in order of popularity, were chocolate, yogurt and cookies, each of which were chosen roughly 7% of the time. Potato chips were consumed at just 6% of snacking opportunities.

The survey also noted that more than two-thirds of all healthy snacks were eaten during the day, with more indulgent treats - chocolate, potato chips, ice cream - appearing in the evenings.

Fruit has been the most popular snack for some time now, but there is a definite trend towards healthy eating, marked by the presence of yogurt in the number 3 spot this year. "In 2005, 21 per cent of individuals ate yogurt in an average week compared to 15 per cent of individuals surveyed in 2001." Increasingly, consumers are opting for the "guilt-free" snacks, and since their interest is increasing, so is the quality of the products from the manufacturer's side, continuing the trend

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The UCLA School of Public Health recently finished a study that found that men and women who ate a cup of salad each day had higher concentrations of folic acid, vitamins C and E, lycopene and alpha and beta carotene in the bloodstream than men and women who did not. Because many people do not get enough nutrients even when taking nutritional supplements, this is good news to anyone who can make room in their diet for an additional 90grams (1 cup) of salad on a daily basis.

Salad, as it was counted in the study, is considered to be raw vegetables, salad greens (lettuce, etc) and dressing. Scientists say that the results of this study should help to dispell the concerns that they body may have difficulty absorbing nutritents from raw vegetables, though a little bit of low fat dressing couldn't hurt - not to mention that salads are just a little bit more interesting with an added layer of flavor.

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The British kitchen equipment firm Kenwood conducted a study that found that 33% of Britons have never cooked a meal. While it's safe to assume that beans on toast doesn't constitute "from scratch" cooking, they didn't specify what level of culinary proficiency was needed to qualify, although they noted that only 34% cook completely from scratch, so there was clearly a middle ground that was taken into account. Cooking aside, it is difficult to ignore the fact that most of their survey respondents said that they prefer to bring in all or part of a meal, rather than cooking it themselves, and that 7 in 10 spend less than one hour on each meal they make.

A nutritionist who analyzed the results said that cooking is perceived as taking time, effort and money, but the fact that 5 in 10 people said they were "happy to spend £100 or more on a meal out" suggests that perhaps people really just don't like to cook -or even that they simply can't, despite the popularity of food programming on TV - rather than that they feel they are spending too much time or money when they do.

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A new study published by the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion says that Americans aren't eating enough servings of fruits and vegetables. The USDA looked at the results of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III from 1999 to 2000 to collect data from over 8,000 people, ages 2 and up and compared them to the new (MyPyramid) and old (5 servings a day) nutritional guidelines.

They found that based on the old guidelines, only 40% of people were getting the recommended amounts. Based on the new recommendations, which are significantly higher, only 10% of people would be eating the suggested amount of fruits and vegetables.

Wait - 1999? The problem with the study is that it is comparing old data to our new standards. Granted, people weren't eating enough vegetables in 1999 and you can be sure that not all people are eating enough now, but dietary trends have changed enough that the comparison might not yield accurate results. In the past 7 years, there has been a tremendous growth in organic and natural foods, heirloom fruits and vegetables and in healthier eating overall. The trends are so much more prevalent now than they were when the data for the survey was collected, that it is likely the numbers are more encouraging, even if we're only up to 15% instead of 10%.

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