How much- and what- do you really eat?

[Guest guest]

Reality Check

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26793-2002Sep2.html

Okay, how much -- and what -- do you really

eat?

If you're like most people, the perception is

very different from reality.

" People have this notion that their diet is

better than it is, " says Adam Drewnowski,

director of the nutritional sciences program at

the University of Washington in Seattle and

author of several studies on food intake.

" People will say, 'Oh yeah, I drink orange

juice every day.' " But food record studies --

the kind of research where participants record

everything that passes their lips for about two

weeks -- often show otherwise, he says.

Most people overestimate intake of healthful

foods and{ndash}you may as well as confess

right now -- underestimate consumption of

unhealthful foods. But research also suggests

some gender differences. For example, men

tend to exaggerate their consumption of

vegetables, while women are more likely to

underreport eating such high-calorie foods as

chocolate and ice cream, Drewnowski notes.

Those findings are echoed by a U.S.

Department of Agriculture survey of 5,700

adults. Conducted by the department's Center

for Nutrition Policy and Promotion and

released in 2000, the survey found striking

differences between what participants thought

they ate and what they actually consumed.

Some of the biggest gaps? Underestimating

how many carbohydrates, fats, oils and sweets

were eaten and overestimating intake of fruit,

dairy products, meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs

and nuts, according to Basiotis, director

of the center and lead author of the study.

Here's the breakdown of perception vs. reality

by food groups. See how you compare:

Grains. All adults believed they ate fewer of

these carbohydrates (about two to three

servings daily) than they actually consumed

(roughly four to six servings per day). Even

so, nearly all ate fewer than the daily

recommendations, which range from six to 11

servings per day.

Fruit. Both men and women thought they ate

more fruit than they really consumed. Men 19

to 50 years old were off the most, believing

that they ate two servings daily, when they

actually consumed only one. The

recommendation is to eat three to four

servings of fruit per day.

Vegetables. Women were closest to the

mark, perceiving that they consumed about

2.5 servings per day and in reality eating

slightly less than two servings. But both men

and women fell short of the daily

recommendation of about three to five

servings a day of vegetables.

Milk/dairy foods. All participants skimped

on milk products, believing that they ate the

recommended two to three servings per day.

In truth, they actually consumed between one

and 1.6 servings daily.

Meat/poultry/fish. Everybody's reality fell

short on this one. All respondents thought

they consumed about three to four servings a

day of these foods, but their food diaries

showed they ate between 1.6 and 2.5 servings

a day.

Fat, oils and sweets. Participants were

certain that they ate only about two servings

per day of these high-calorie foods. The

reality? They consumed three to 4.5 servings

per day.