By any other name, it's still a supersize

Fast-food portions keep getting bigger, but you might not know it

By Lisa R. Young, Ph.D, R.D.
MSNBC contributor
updated 9:16 a.m. ET, Fri., Oct. 19, 2007
Fast-food restaurants may brag about their premium salads and apple fries, but for all the healthier items they've added to menus, portion bloat is bigger than ever.
Not only are servings getting larger, some top fast-food chains are engaged in a sleight-of-name game — marketing ploys which could confuse customers who think they're ordering less than they actually are, according to a study I co-authored with Dr. Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University, published in a recent Journal of Public Health Policy.
When McDonald's dumped its Supersize selections three years ago, many nutritionists were hopeful that restaurant chains and fast-food establishments would get back to thinking small.
Fat chance.
Are you going to finish that?
In the last few years, Hardee’s, Burger King and Wendy's all have introduced 1,000-calorie-plus sandwiches stuffed with 12 ounces of beef — the amount of meat recommended for two days for most adults. In addition, Hardee's just rolled out a new Country Breakfast Burrito, a tortilla wrap stuffed with two egg omelets, sausage, bacon, ham, cheddar cheese, hash browns and gravy. The burrito contains 920 calories and 60 grams of fat, almost all the fat an adult needs in a single day.
That's a really big gulp
You can't order a Supersize soda at McDonald's anymore, but the fast-food giant recently introduced the Hugo, pouring in at a bladder-busting 42-ounces and 410-calories. Last year Wendy's rolled out its own 42-ounce version and Burger King also promotes a 42-ounce King Size soda. 7-Eleven offers the 64-ounce Double Gulp soda — a half-gallon, nearly 800-calorie drink marketed for one person. And Starbucks sells jumbo-sized coffee drinks, such as the Venti Frappuccino Strawberries and Crème which contains well over 600 calories.
Scaling back
To be fair, some restaurants have tried to scale it back. When Ruby Tuesday cut serving sizes in 2004, customers balked, and the big portions returned.
Big servings are not going away any time soon, but you don’t have to be a victim of portion distortion. Here are some strategies to try:

Steer clear of large, jumbo and king size orders. Even a medium portion can be big, so share it with a friend. Better yet, opt for the small.
Eat half of what you order. Ask for a doggie bag and enjoy the rest on another day.
Have a bottle of water or diet soda instead of a regular sugar-laden soda.
Order a side salad with your meal.
Savor your food and eat more slowly. Put your fork down between bites. This will help you eat less.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20825325/

Phrases:

‘fat chance”: This is a slang term that means there is very little chance of the desired outcome happening.

Examples:
Fat chance that Suzy will come in first place this year.
OR.
When I asked Bobby out, he only said, “Fat chance”, back to me.

“rolled out”: This means to bring something new out, usually referring to an object.

Examples:
He rolled out of the dealership in his new car.

“doggie bag”: This means to ask for a bag to bring your leftover food home with you. Doggie since usually leftover food was given to pets in North America.

Examples:
When John couldn’t eat anymore food, he asked for a doggie bag from the waitress.

True or False: