My mind wanders to weird places late in the day...
My stepson is in daycare and has started coming home at night talking to us about making a 'happy plate' at lunch and dinner. Apparently a happy plate is an empty plate. So, this made me think... we as a culture have a problem with portion sizes. I know the daycare center doesn't over portion him, and we don't really either, but we aren't the only place where he gets his meals... What we are trying to do now is encourage the 'happy plate' to mean that he tried some of everything and stopped eating when he was full.
I remember my grandfather telling me I had to eat everything on my plate because somewhere little kids were starving and would love to have my brussel sprouts. I used to clean my plate at his house, and as an adult I tend to do the same thing, almost obsessively sometimes. Today, I weigh and measure everything, so I don't feel at risk from my own meals. I cut things up and put half or more in take out containers at restaurants before I start most of the time, otherwise I tend to overeat. My best friend is an overweight man and he recalls his mom telling him to eat everything before he could get up from the table.
So, do you think the 'clean your plate' mentality contributed to our increasing weight problem in America?