Lose Weight With Portion Control Plates, Study Finds

Note from Connie: There’s great news for overweight and obese people: A very simple tactic can help you to peel off pounds — just use smaller plates. This is such an obvious, but effective tip, which a new study concludes works quite well. Karen James tells you about this heartening research.

Of course, we all know that you shouldn’t eat too much. Well, now a it, a Canadian endocrinologist has found that a special set of “portion control plates” helped dieters lose weight, which we learned about from the Los Angeles Times.

The study — the first clinical trial on "portion control plates" — was conducted by Sue Pedersen, M.D., F.R.C.P.C. (seen on the left, thanks to CTV Newsnet) of the University of Calgary and published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The researchers discovered that after six months, obese, type 2 diabetics who used the special plate lost an average of 1.8% of their weight, compared with 0.1% loss in the control group of another 65 people who didn’t use the dishes. A subgroup of subjects who were taking insulin averaged a loss of 2.5 % over the six months.

The special plate, which is made by Diet Plate Limited of England, held about 800 calories, with painted lines marking sections for grains, cheese, sauce and protein, lost an average of 2.5 percent of their weight over six months.

What’s more, 26 percent of the plate users versus 11 percent of those in the control group were able to reduce their hyperglycemia medication.

And, despite having no fat or oil restrictions, the plate users saw their triglyceride and cholesterol numbers improve, too.

Marion Nestle (no relation to the corporation), a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University — whom Connie interviewed for SUGAR SHOCK! — wasn’t surprised. She told the L.A. Times that portion size has increased so radically in our era of super-sizing that most people really don’t know how much they’re eating.

Karen James for the SUGAR SHOCK! Blog