PORTIONS IN PROPORTION

Not only are you what you eat, you are how much you eat.

A slew of recent studies shows that Americans are gaining weight at a startling clip. One in three Americans is now classified

as obese. One reason is that Americans eat a lot more than their counterparts in other countries.

Two recent developments, one in Maine and the other nationwide, should help. In Maine, first lady Karen Baldacci last week unveiled the state’s “Get Your Portions in Proportion” campaign. Despite its tongue-twister name, the campaign has a serious aim. As a TV ad that will air as part of the campaign points out, the average American consumes 150 more calories today than 15 years ago. Those added calories can add up to an extra 15 pounds of body fat per year.

To combat this trend, the Bureau of Health will air TV and radio ads, provide on-line information and distribute literature statewide encouraging people to eat smaller portions at home. Their slogan is “A little less … is usually plenty.” It is a timely message. People are reminded that a serving of meat, for example, should be the size of a deck of playing cards and that a bagel the size of a hockey puck equals two of the recommended six daily servings of bread.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania recently compared portion sizes in Philadelphia and Paris. By weighing foods from supermarkets and restaurants, they found the American portions consistently bigger. An order of french fries, for instance, was 48 percent larger in Philadelphia. A Chinese restaurant dish was 70 percent larger on this side of the Atlantic and a serving of soda was 51 percent larger.

Not surprisingly, only 10 percent of French are considered obese, compared with America’s 30 percent.

While far from solving America’s obesity problem, recent news that McDonald’s would stop offering Super Size portions was encouraging. The restaurant chain, beleaguered by lawsuits and bad press about the nutritional quality of its food, made the move to simplify its menu and to give customers “a balance of choices” for a balanced lifestyle, according to a company spokesman.

The news that super sizing – increasing the size of the fries and drink that come with a sandwich – will be phased out at the eatery’s 13,000-plus locations by the end of the year comes just before the spring release of “Super Size Me.” The movie, which chronicles the deterioration of the health of filmmaker Morgan Spurlock who subsists on nothing but McDonald’s food for a month – and is obliged to accepted super sizing every time it is suggested by a cashier – won acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival.

The demise of super size is proof that smaller can be better.