A Full Bowl; A Full Stomach

Overweight all her life — minus the two times she lost weight only to regain it — Brenda Nutt knew she needed to make a big change. Motivated by the birth of her great-niece and her desire to be around as she grew up, Brenda — a school teacher and self-proclaimed speed eater — decided to do something about it: She chose gastric bypass surgery.

Quickly becoming a popular option for those who can’t take the weight off and keep it off, gastric bypass surgery essentially reduces the size of the stomach, allowing food to bypass part of the small intestine to make a person feel full faster. Right after her surgery, Brenda was limited to only one ounce of liquid every 15 minutes. Now able to eat four ounces of food at a time, Brenda — along with others who’ve had the surgery — face a problem at each meal: four ounces of food doesn’t look like much.

Luckily, she found the set of Yum Yum Dishes given to her as a gift a few years back. Stored in her pantry and unused since she received them, Brenda now sees them in a new light: They’re the perfect tool to fool her eyes when she sits down for a meal. With a set at all the homes of her relatives she never gets the idea she’s being cheated with the amount of food she’s getting. It truly helps her control the amount she eats.

For Brenda, and many in her situation, portion control is a real obstacle when it comes losing weight. Using Yum Yum Dishes instead of a large plate or bowl makes it easier: It now looks like she’s getting something to eat because the Yum Yum Dish is full, whereas the plates or bowls she used before with only four ounces of food would barely look like a bite.

Created by Tracy Adler, a former restaurateur and mother of two, to help kids and grown-ups manage their snacking habits in a healthy way; Yum Yum Dishes are increasingly becoming popular among adults who are looking to lose weight.

Studies have shown that how much you eat is just as important as what you eat when it comes to losing weight, and keeping it off. Many people though, just like Brenda before, find it difficult to stop at four ounces. But Brenda offers this simple advice: “When it comes to portion control, you have to change the size of the dishes you’re putting your food in.”

And right now for Brenda, Yum Yum Dishes seem to be the perfect fit.