L.A.'s New Portion-Size Campaign...

The New York City soda ban made headlines around the globe, and now another major US city is launching a public anti-obesity initiative.

Last week, Los Angeles residents were introduced to "Choose Less, Weigh Less," a portion-control campaign designed to help Angelinos slash surplus calories. According to organizers, nearly 24 percent of L.A. county residents were obese in 2011, a whopping 74 percent increase since 1997.

A purely educational endeavor (no bans on In-N-Out Double-Doubles or burritos the size of a catcher’s mitt), the campaign will include ads on buses and billboards, as well as TV, radio, and social media outreach. Visual comparisons are the crux of the project, essentially side-by-side photos of different sized meals and the number of calories saved by downsizing.

Check out some of the comparisons; such as a six-inch sub (460 calories) rather than a foot-long (920 calories) or two pancakes, eggs and bacon strips (640 calories) versus four pancakes and bacon strips with the eggs (1,050 calories).

Each ad also points out, "2,000 calories a day is all most adults need." That helps, because thinking of 2,000 as a daily limit makes it much easier to put 920 in perspective compared to 460. But unfortunately 2,000 is just an average, and many of my female clients’ needs are much closer to 1,600.