A serving size is the suggested amount of food or beverage to consume at a meal or in a snack, according to guidelines from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Serving sizes help to regulate the amount of calories consumed each day; they also encourage eating a wide variety of foods to completely meet your nutritional needs.
Grains
Grains encompass a large group of food items that fall under the category of starches. In general, a serving of grains is equal to a 1-ounce portion and provides 80 calories per serving. Examples include one slice of bread, half an English muffin, one mini-bagel, seven crackers, one packet of instant oatmeal, 1/2 cup of cooked pasta, a small flour or corn tortilla, 3 cups of popped popcorn or 1/2 cup of beans.
Fruit
Pureed, dried, canned, fresh and frozen fruits and 100-percent fruit juices are included in the fruit category. One serving of fruit provides 60 calories. A serving for fresh whole fruit, such as apples, peaches or pears, is classified as small or being able to fit in the palm of your hand like a baseball. A whole banana is considered to be two servings. The serving size for 100-percent fruit juice is 4 ounces. A serving of canned or chopped fresh fruit is 1/2 cup. Dried fruit is a bit smaller, 1/4 cup, as the sugar content is condensed.
Vegetables
A serving of vegetables is 1 cup of raw vegetables, including carrots, cucumber, green beans, peppers, celery or leafy greens such as romaine. For cooked vegetables, the serving size is 1/2 cup. Vegetable juice is included in the category; 1/2 cup is one serving. Each serving of vegetables adds only 25 calories to your daily intake, so consuming vegetables can be as an effective means of calorie control.
Milk
The serving size for milk, whether whole, low-fat or fat-free, is 8 ounces; chocolate and soy milk are included in this group. Other dairy products, such as yogurt, have an 8-ounce serving size; a serving of ice cream or frozen yogurt is 1 1/2 cups. Calories per serving tend to vary within this category, as the amounts of fat are divided into the subcategories: skim, at 90 calories per serving; low-fat, at 120 calories per serving; and whole, at 150 calories per serving.
Meat and Proteins
The serving size for meat, poultry or fish is 1 ounce. The recommended portion size for meat at one meal is 3 to 4 ounces, about the size of a deck of cards. Depending on the cut of meat, the calorie count will vary from 35 to 100 calories per ounce. Serving sizes of other protein foods are 1 cup of dried beans, 1 tablespoon of peanut butter and 1/2 cup of nuts or seeds. Cheese also falls into the protein group, with a serving size of 1 1/2 ounces--about two slices of an American-type cheese or 3 die-sized cubes of a hard, Cheddar-style cheese.
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