Many people have a tendency to forget about or grossly underestimate serving size. Fortunately, nutritional labels do tell you how many servings are in a jar, bottle, can, etc. of a particular food. They also list other nutritional information (e.g. Carbs, Protein, Fat, Sodium, etc.) per serving size on their labels. But, most times we do a cursory examination of these labels, assuming that the number of carbs, calories, and fat listed means for the entire food item. So, it's very easy to miss the fact that you may be eating upwards as three or four times as much of the bad stuff than you thought you were.

Here's a breakdown of the four foods highlighted in an issue of Men's Health. Granted, none are healthy in the first place, but you'll see that eating the product in its entirety is even worse than you may have thought.

KING-SIZE SNICKERS BAR: 170 serving size calories listed on label. 510 calories in entire bar.

20-OUNCE BOTTLE OF COCA-COLA: 100 serving size calories listed on label. 250 calories in entire bottle.

3.75-OUNCE BAG OF CHEX MIX: 130 serving size calories listed on label. 455 calories in entire package.

4-PACK KEEBLER SOFT BATCH COOKIES: 80 serving size calories listed on label. 320 calories in entire package.

Again, these foods are not exactly staples of a healthy diet to begin with, but the point is illustrated nonetheless. The same serving size issue applies for foods that people generally consider to be healthy, as well, so a serving size review is still warranted.

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With summer imminently approaching, and in some places already in full-swing, now seems like a great time to get the skinny on just how fattening food served at carnivals and street fairs can be.

Before I even read the article posted on eDiets I had a sneaking suspicion that elephant ears, which are basically fried dough, were perhaps not the most nutritious of snacks. In fact, I pondered if a low-fat, low-cal option even existed at fairs. Water, perhaps. Maybe cotton candy, although that's made of sugar.

It turns out, according to this article, anyway, that many foods I suspected were not so good for me aren't. I also learned that there are a few options for those of us out there trying to make the most of our carnival experience without all the fat.

For starters, cotton candy is basically sugar and food coloring. While you should be concerned about the amount of sugar you consume (some experts estimate it's over --- pounds per year per American) you needn't worry about fat, trans or otherwise, when eating cotton candy. What makes me more nervous about cotton candy than the sugar is the dye used to color it. Remember that rule about not eating blue food???

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Those of us who are trying to eat healthfully tend to base our dietary decisions on both hunger and the information available to us at a given time. In other words, we will sometimes give in if we really want a package of peanut M&Ms, but for most products, we'll read the nutritional information before making a decision. Whether you follow a diet of your own making or one of the mainstream diets, the most important piece of information on the package is the portion size, which allows you to see how many calories or how much fat you might be taking in.

But how far can that be trusted? A recent blogger's look at the Snickers Almond bar revealed that the bar was 14% larger than the packaged claimed - weighing in at 2.0-oz instead of the promised 1.76-oz. This adds value, but it adds calories and fat, as well.

There are two ways to combat this problem. First, you can make sure you're getting the proper portion size. With multiple-serving packages, you can measure out the portion sizes if you want to be accurate, but it can be a hassle with single-serving foods, which might have to be weighed. The second solution is to build in a cushion, giving yourself a little extra leeway in your daily diet to account for days when you are, unwittingly, going over your target.