What Counts as One Serving?
The amount of food that counts as one serving is listed below. If you eat a larger portion, count it as more than 1 serving. For example, a dinner portion of spaghetti would count as 2 or 3 servings of pasta.

Be sure to eat at least the lowest number of servings from the fiver major food groups listed below. You need them for the vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, and protein they provide. Just try to pick the lowest fat choices from the food groups. No specific serving size is given for the fats, oils, and sweets group because the message is USE SPARINGLY.

Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese are: 1 cup of milk or yogurt, 1 ½ ounces of natural cheese, and 2 ounces of process cheese.

Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, and Nuts are: 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish, and ½ cup of cooked dry beans, 1 egg, or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter count as 1 ounce of lean meat.

Vegetable are: 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables, ½ cup of chopped, cooked, or chopped raw, and ¾ cup of vegetable juice.

Fruits are: 1 medium apple, banana, orange, ½ cup of chopped, cooked, or canned fruit, and ¾ cup of juice.

Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta are: 1 slice of bread, 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal, and ½ cup of cooked cereal, rice, or pasta.

Fats, Oils, and Sweets Use Sparingly

• Try to stay away from foods high in saturated fats.
• Go easy on fast and sugars added to foods in cooking or at the table—butter, margarine, gravy, salad dressing, sugar, and jelly.
• Choose fewer foods that are high in sugar—candy, sweet desserts, and soft drinks.
• The most effective way to moderate the amount of fat and added sugars in your diet is to cut down on “extras” (foods in this group). Also choose lower fat and lower sugar foods from the other five food groups often.

• Choose skim milk and nonfat yogurt often. They are the lowest in fat and a good source of protein.
• 1 ½ to 2 ounces of cheese and 8 ounces of yogurt count as a serving from this group because they supply the same amount of calcium as 1 cup of milk.
• Choose “part skim” or lowfat cheese when available and lower fat milk desserts, like ice milk or frozen yogurt. Read labels.

• Choose lean meat, poultry without skin, fish, and dry beans and peas often. They are the choices lowest in saturated fat.
• Nut and seeds are an excellent snack but you must watch the recommended amounts listed on the label. They are a good source of unsaturated fats proteins.

• Trim away all the fat you can see
• Remove skin from poultry
• Broil, roast, or boil these foods instead of frying them.

• For maximum benefit it is recommended that you eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
• Different types of vegetables provide different nutrients. Eat a variety.
• Include dark-green leafy vegetables and legumes several times a week—they are especially good sources of vitamins and minerals. Legumes also provide protein and can be used in place of meat.
• Go easy on the fat you add to vegetables at the table during cooking. Added spreads or toppings, such as butter, mayonnaise, and salad dressing, count as fat.

• Choose fresh fruits, fruit juices, and frozen, canned, or dried fruit. Go easy on fruits canned or frozen in heavy syrups and sweetened fruit juices.
• Eat whole fruits often—they are higher in fiber than fruit juices.
• Count only 100 percent fruit juice as fruit. Punches, ades, and most fruit “drinks” contain only a little juice and lots of added sugars.

• To get the fiber you need, choose several servings a day of foods made from whole grains or multi-grains.
• Choose most often foods that are made with little fat or sugars, like bread, English muffins, rice, and pasta.
• Go easy on the fat and sugars you add as spreads, seasonings, or toppings.
• When preparing pasta, stuffing, and sauce from packaged mixes, use only half the butter or margarine suggested, if milk or cream is called for, use lowfat milk.
• Pay close attention to serving sizes. Unused carbohydrates will be stored as fats.