What is the average serving size of chicken

If you pack yourself a healthy lunch of a lean meat and vegetable sandwich on whole-grain bread, congratulations! You are probably saving yourself from the belly-busting caloriefest that you'd experience if you went to a restaurant.

But did you accurately record the calories in your whole grain bread? If you think your sandwich equals one serving, think again. For many bread products, a single serving is only one slice of bread. Perhaps consider a bread swap. Quick Fix: Learn how to cut calories when making sandwiches. A healthy serving of fresh fruit is a great alternative to a high-fat dessert.

But if you are counting your calories or watching your sugar intake you need to monitor how much you are eating. Take grapes for example. If you sit down with a bowl of grapes, you might add one serving of grapes to your food diary. A single cup serving of grapes is only 16 grapes. Get out your calculator before you start chomping. Quick Fix: Reduce your sugar intake. Sugary drinks are one of the easiest things to overconsume.

We often put them next to us and mindlessly sip away. But the calories in soda add up, even if you only drink one a day! And for many reasons, diet soda is not a good alternative. A serving size of Coke is 12 ounces. But most of us drink plenty more than that when we fill up at the soda fountain.

A Double Gulp contains 50 ounces and calories. Quick Fix: Learn to make flavored water to reduce snack cravings. A healthy salad is a great alternative to a high starch, high-fat meal. But the salad dressing can add calories that could make any prudent calorie counter blush. By some estimates, many restaurant salads contain over calories, most often due to the fatty dressing. A serving size of salad dressing is just two tablespoons.

If you order your dressing on the side, your waiter will probably bring you much more than that and if you're like many restaurant diners, you pour all of it on your salad. Quick Fix: Make a salad that's good for your diet. No matter what kind of food you are eating, portion size matters. Even if you are eating "healthy" food, you should be mindful of the amount that you consume. We do not accept advertising on this page. For more details on how we produce our content and its sources, visit the About our health information section.

Back to top Menu. Portion size guide. Recommended portion size for starchy foods Starchy foods are our most important source of energy. Day one Breakfast 40g 1. Here's what counts as a portion. What does this look like? This is a roasted chicken breast about the same size as a pack of playing cards.

Here are some examples of how you might incorporate protein into your diet. Day one Lunch A portion of baked beans on your baked potato Dinner Chicken or lentil-based curry Day two Breakfast Two scrambled eggs Lunch Chicken slices in your sandwich Day three Lunch Lentil-based soup Dinner Salmon Try to have two portions of fish a week, one of which should be oily fish. How healthy are you? A ml 7floz glass of milk or fortified soya, rice or oat milk A carton of yoghurt or fortified soya yoghurt ml or 4.

Day one Breakfast Milk on cereal Lunch Low-fat cheese on a baked potato Day two Breakfast Milk added to porridge Dinner Yoghurt with curry Day three Breakfast Yoghurt-based smoothie Dinner Grated cheese added to a pasta dish Remember that the milk on your cereal and in your tea all counts.

Fruit and vegetables Aim to eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Here are some examples of what a portion looks like. One medium fruit, such as an apple, orange, pear or banana. Two small fruits, such as kiwis, satsumas or plums. One large slice of a larger fruit, such as pineapple, or two slices of mango. A handful of grapes or berries. Three heaped tablespoons of peas, sweetcorn or carrots. A dessert bowl of salad. Three heaped tablespoons of beans or lentils only counts as a maximum of one per day.

A handful of grapes makes a good snack. This is what two slices of pineapple looks like when diced. Day one Breakfast Berries or banana on your cereal Lunch Salad leaves in a sandwich An apple Dinner A tomato-based pasta sauce, with side salad Day two Breakfast Half a grapefruit with breakfast Lunch Baked beans with baked potato Two satsumas Dinner Two portions of vegetables Day three Breakfast Glass of orange juice Lunch Carrot, cucumber and pepper in a wrap A handful of dried fruit Dinner Spinach added to curry Strawberries with yoghurt for dessert.

Oils and spreads We need some fat in our diets , but this should mainly come from unsaturated fats. Did our information help you? Complete the survey. About our health information At Bupa we produce a wealth of free health information for you and your family.

Chicken breast is an excellent, complete source of protein. In one small chicken breast, you get 27 grams of protein, or 55 percent of the daily value DV if you follow a 2,calorie diet. The serving gives you calories and 3 grams of fat, of which only 1 gram is the unhealthy saturated variety. A serving of chicken breast adds a good blend of minerals and vitamins to your daily regimen. You need phosphorus to build healthy bones and teeth, while selenium is an antioxidant mineral that helps protect you against free radicals — molecules that can damage your healthy cells.

Chicken breast is a rich source of the B-family vitamins, which work in tandem to help you process food into fuel to run your body. Believe it or not, there's a little wiggle room when defining the "right" serving size of chicken.

However, several health authorities recommend sticking to established daily and weekly guidelines for protein intake — and that's a good place to start gauging serving size. As the University of Idaho Extension explains, a typical serving of meat, including chicken, is 3 ounces. That's about the size of a deck of cards, a computer mouse or the open palm of most peoples' hands not counting the fingers. But in its Dietary Guidelines for Americans, , the U. That's for a 2,calorie diet — if you eat fewer calories you'll also eat slightly less protein.

For example, the typical protein allowance on a 1, or 1,calorie U. Although you could theoretically eat those 5 ounces of protein all in one sitting, it's more satisfying — and easier to eat a balanced diet — if you split that protein allowance between a couple of meals.