What's a serving size?

1. Fruits, vegetables and leafy greens 
Serving sizes are 1 cup for leafy greens and 1/2 cup for all other vegetables and fruits. The lettuce alone in a large salad may well count for 2 or more vegetable servings. The default portion for most fruits and vegetables in the Plan Manager is one cup.

2. Packaged whole grains
Use the nutrition label to determine the serving size of packaged whole grain foods.

3. Milk and dairy
If you are more than 50 years old or are a teenager or a nursing mom, increase milk servings to three each day. Examples of one milk serving include 1 cup of milk or yogurt or 1 1/2 ounces of many cheeses.

4. Healthy oils
Having 2 teaspoons of healthy oil each day ensures that you get the vitamin E and essential fatty acids that your body needs. Use the oil on salads, in cooking or as an ingredient in a mixed dish. Two teaspoons of oil is not even 1 tablespoon, so be careful to measure, since each additional teaspoon counts as another PointsPlus value of 1.

5. Lean meat and fish
A serving of lean meat or fish is generally 3 to 4 ounces, about the size of a deck of cards.

6. Water Six 8-ounce glasses of water is just 3 standard 16-ounce bottles.