22 Photos That Show What 200 Calories *Really* Looks Like
When it comes to healthy eating, a lot of people tend to focus on calorie counting. But what does that even mean? There’s a general range that people tend to stick to, but it’s hard to know what this really looks like unless you exclusively eat pre-packaged food. And, since we’re all about cooking fresh, we’re often at a loss for nutrition facts.
There are plenty of nutrition calculators you can use online to get the specifics of a given dish or snack, but this visual project by the folks at wiseGEEK definitely made us look. As they point out, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says that the average adult needs to consume 2000-2500 calories per day to maintain their weight. So, if you have a fixed amount of calories to “spend’ every day, what would you eat? A spoonful of peanut butter versus half a Jack-in-the-Box cheeseburger? A huge pile of celery versus half a Snickers bar?
Each of the portions below (and above!) represents 200 calories of that particular type of food. Each photo was taken with the same camera with the same exact setup, meaning all portion sizes displayed are relative to each other.
Going row by row, starting at the top left: Bacon (34 grams); Coca Cola (496 milliliters); Gummy Bears (51 grams); Bailey’s Irish Cream (60 milliliters); French Fries (73 grams); Dried Apricots (83 grams); Canned Black Beans (186 grams); Broccoli (588 grams); and Lowfat Strawberry Yogurt (196 grams).
Again, row by row, starting at the top left: Butter (28 grams); Hershey’s Chocolate Chips (36 grams); Mini Peppers (740 grams); Glazed Donut (52 grams); Avocado (125 grams); Eggs (150 grams); Doritos (41 grams); M&Ms (40 grams); and Smoked Turkey (204 grams).