Photos reveal portion sizes of typical Christmas dinner

Portion sizes have grown exponentially in the last few decades – and it’s having an effect on our waistlines.

Larger portions are threatening people’s health by encouraging them to overeat, a Cambridge University study found.

Now, new images reveal the portion sizes we should really be eating, especially this Christmas when everyone tends to overindulge.

The photos show the exact amounts of festive food we need to lose, maintain or gain weight on Christmas Day – and there’s a large difference between the smallest and the biggest sizes.

Starting with a smoked salmon starter, the images also reveal the best portion sizes of Christmas pudding as well as how much turkey we should be piling onto our plates. 

The series of images by kitchen gadget MealKitt show three courses of a Christmas dinner laid out on a table, which all have different portion sizes.

The smallest reveals the exact amount of food needed to lose weight, the central plate is the amount needed to maintain weight and the largest plate is the amount needed to gain weight.  

Gaining weight may be the last thing on some people’s minds but many fitness fans want to bulk up or increase muscle mass. 

Or perhaps you simply want to indulge and tuck into a big plate on a day when no-one is paying attention to the bathroom scales.

STARTER 

Smoked salmon with lemon is a very common Christmas Day starter and this image reveals the amount to eat if you want to lose (foreground), maintain (centre), or gain (background) weight

MAIN 

A typical Christmas dinner of parsnips, sprouts, red cabbage, stuffing, turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce and roast potatoes – but the plates reveal how much to eat to lose (left), maintain (centre), or gain (right) weight

DESSERT 

There’s a big difference between portion sizes of Christmas pudding depending on if you want to lose (left), maintain (centre), or gain (right) weight