Trying to discover the reason of mass obesity, nutritionists have thoroughly investigated not only what we eat but also how much. Scientists claim that for the last 50 years a standard portion and serving size has doubled or even tripled. Take such average products as pies, crisps, pizza, muffins, and burgers which suddenly became much larger than they used to be. Frequently we can see that a single portion contains multiple servings of food or drinks. Why did it happen? Probably, the enhanced demand among teenagers and young adults who tend to be hungrier with every year stimulated manufacturers and restaurants. Nutritionists admit that the size of the portion matters when it comes to abilities of our body. If small portions are much more likely to be converted into energy over a short period of time, so-called “family packs” will surely be stored around one’s waist and hips.
Once, restaurant visitors complained that an average portion of the meal is too small as compared to its price. Perhaps, even now we cannot get an overlarge portion of salad in a classy vegan establishment or have twice more freshly squeezed juice than we used to a decade ago. But it is not the case with McDonald’s. Present-day single portions strongly resemble family meals twenty years ago. Obviously, people not only exercised more in the erstwhile society but also ate less.
Manufacturers pursue a steady tendency in promoting large packs and portions using a correlation of a low price to a large size. Consumers are much more likely to buy a bigger package of snacks just because it looks beneficial. But after that, they get used to consuming larger and larger portions so that they cannot move back to eating small pieces. Eventually, the digestive system feels overloaded and store more calories in fatty tissue.