Many observations hint that out-of-home portion sizes are increasing.
10 Another possibility is the size of food portions. An obvious suggestion is food consumed outside the home, which accounted for 34% of the food budget in 1970 9 but 47% by the late 1990s. 8 Regardless of how imprecise such figures may be, they appear to confirm that Americans consume more energy than they did in the past.Īt issue is the cause of this increase. Indeed, dietary intake surveys indicate a per capita increase of 200 kcal/d from 1977–1978 6 to 1994–1996, 7 and the US food supply (total food produced, less exports, plus imports) now provides 500 kcal/d per capita more than in the 1970s. If, as has been reported, activity patterns have not changed much in the past decade, 4, 5 the rise in body weights must be caused by increased energy intake.
1– 3 Although multiple factors can account for weight gain, the basic cause is an excess of energy intake over expenditure. The prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased sharply among US adults and children in recent years.
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