Nutrition Facts labels confuse many people. The label was included on packaged foods in the 1990s to make purchasing and eating decisions easier. Even among the well-informed, many people have difficulty making good food choices based on the nutrition information provided. Understanding a food container's nutrition information is important for making healthy purchasing decisions involving packaged and prepared foods.
You can ignore the food package’s health claims (e.g., "All Natural") that are often meaningless and begin by checking the ingredient list. Often a short list of ingredients indicates a healthier food choice. In the following Quaker Oats example, there is only one ingredient listed - whole grain oats...
You can ignore the food package’s health claims (e.g., "All Natural") that are often meaningless and begin by checking the ingredient list. Often a short list of ingredients indicates a healthier food choice. In the following Quaker Oats example, there is only one ingredient listed - whole grain oats...
Ingredients are listed in order by their weight, from most to least. Remember that food companies do their best to put a positive spin on their product. Their influence can make the ingredient list a bit tricky to decipher. Keep these basic recommendations in mind when food shopping:
Look for a short list of ingredients that you recognize as real food, not chemicals
When the first three or four items listed are healthy foods, it’s likely a good food choice. A long list of unfamiliar ingredients that are difficult to pronounce indicates a highly-processed food to avoid.
Avoid trans fats by eliminating products made with partially-hydrogenated oil and / or vegetable shortening
Experts recommend having as little trans fat as possible. Even though the label may say 0 grams of trans fat it may still can contain less than 0.5 gram per serving because manufacturers are allowed to round numbers down.
Look for the word "Whole" listed first when selecting whole grain products
Sometimes a few qualifiers are thrown in before "whole" such as "100% natural" shown in the above oats example. An even better approach is to use the 10 : 1 ratio of total carbohydrate to fiber rule when choosing whole-grain foods. For every 10 grams of carbohydrate, there should be at least one gram of fiber. Divide the grams of total carbohydrates by 10. If the grams of fiber are at least as large as the answer, the food meets the genuine whole grain standard. Researchers found that food products meeting this 10:1 total carbohydrate to fiber ratio had less sugar, sodium, and trans fat than products that didn't meet the criteria.
Know the many names for sugar because they all add up
Manufacturers add small amounts of several different types of sugar to hide them farther down the list even though the total sugar may be one of the main ingredients. Be wary when you see sugar listed in different forms such as corn syrup, honey, molasses, concentrated fruit juices (e.g., apple, raisin, pear), and words ending in “ose” that rhyme with "gross" (e.g., glucose, fructose, dextrose, maltose).
Once you have scanned the ingredient list, look at the Nutrition Facts label to see how the food will add or detract from your healthy eating goals. The label contains nutrients we should limit and those we need to get enough of in our diet.
Food Facts is a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) one page resource that gives you an overview of how to choose healthy foods by using the nutrition facts on the food label. The FDA provides a Web page for an in-depth understanding of the Nutrition Facts label along with other nutrition facts label programs and materials.
The following macaroni and cheese Nutrition Facts is a good example of how a label can help you make healthier food choices. You'll quickly see why packaged mac and cheese should not be in your grocery cart!
Most people zero in on something they are trying to limit such as the calories, fat, or sodium and yet it's critical to start by checking the serving size and servings per container (see #1 below). All of the amounts listed are based on the serving size. If you ate this entire container of mac and cheese (2 cups in the example, or twice the serving size), you would consume twice the amount of everything listed on the label.
Look for a short list of ingredients that you recognize as real food, not chemicals
When the first three or four items listed are healthy foods, it’s likely a good food choice. A long list of unfamiliar ingredients that are difficult to pronounce indicates a highly-processed food to avoid.
Avoid trans fats by eliminating products made with partially-hydrogenated oil and / or vegetable shortening
Experts recommend having as little trans fat as possible. Even though the label may say 0 grams of trans fat it may still can contain less than 0.5 gram per serving because manufacturers are allowed to round numbers down.
Look for the word "Whole" listed first when selecting whole grain products
Sometimes a few qualifiers are thrown in before "whole" such as "100% natural" shown in the above oats example. An even better approach is to use the 10 : 1 ratio of total carbohydrate to fiber rule when choosing whole-grain foods. For every 10 grams of carbohydrate, there should be at least one gram of fiber. Divide the grams of total carbohydrates by 10. If the grams of fiber are at least as large as the answer, the food meets the genuine whole grain standard. Researchers found that food products meeting this 10:1 total carbohydrate to fiber ratio had less sugar, sodium, and trans fat than products that didn't meet the criteria.
Know the many names for sugar because they all add up
Manufacturers add small amounts of several different types of sugar to hide them farther down the list even though the total sugar may be one of the main ingredients. Be wary when you see sugar listed in different forms such as corn syrup, honey, molasses, concentrated fruit juices (e.g., apple, raisin, pear), and words ending in “ose” that rhyme with "gross" (e.g., glucose, fructose, dextrose, maltose).
Once you have scanned the ingredient list, look at the Nutrition Facts label to see how the food will add or detract from your healthy eating goals. The label contains nutrients we should limit and those we need to get enough of in our diet.
Food Facts is a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) one page resource that gives you an overview of how to choose healthy foods by using the nutrition facts on the food label. The FDA provides a Web page for an in-depth understanding of the Nutrition Facts label along with other nutrition facts label programs and materials.
The following macaroni and cheese Nutrition Facts is a good example of how a label can help you make healthier food choices. You'll quickly see why packaged mac and cheese should not be in your grocery cart!
Most people zero in on something they are trying to limit such as the calories, fat, or sodium and yet it's critical to start by checking the serving size and servings per container (see #1 below). All of the amounts listed are based on the serving size. If you ate this entire container of mac and cheese (2 cups in the example, or twice the serving size), you would consume twice the amount of everything listed on the label.
The percent daily value (%DV) indicates what percent of the daily requirement for a particular nutrient is in one serving. To determine whether a food is high or low in a nutrient, remember this % Daily Value rule:
5% or less is LOW
20% or more is HIGH
Using this 5 - 20 rule allows you to quickly determine what is high or low. When I was teaching food label reading to a group of adults, I watched a light bulb go off for one participant who previously thought the higher the better when it came to %Daily Value. That is only true for the nutrients we need to get enough of (i.e., those highlighted in blue above).
In the above example, the % Daily Value for calcium is high (20%) and that's good news for your bones. The % Daily Value for sodium is also high (20%) which is not good if you are concerned about high blood pressure. Even though the total fat and saturated fat are less than 20%, they are getting close at 18% and 15%, respectively. Mac and cheese is better prepared from scratch at home where you control the amount of cheese and salt added. It's better to leave this box of processed mac and cheese on the grocer's shelf.
5% or less is LOW
20% or more is HIGH
Using this 5 - 20 rule allows you to quickly determine what is high or low. When I was teaching food label reading to a group of adults, I watched a light bulb go off for one participant who previously thought the higher the better when it came to %Daily Value. That is only true for the nutrients we need to get enough of (i.e., those highlighted in blue above).
In the above example, the % Daily Value for calcium is high (20%) and that's good news for your bones. The % Daily Value for sodium is also high (20%) which is not good if you are concerned about high blood pressure. Even though the total fat and saturated fat are less than 20%, they are getting close at 18% and 15%, respectively. Mac and cheese is better prepared from scratch at home where you control the amount of cheese and salt added. It's better to leave this box of processed mac and cheese on the grocer's shelf.
Using the % Daily Value 5-20 rule, you can quickly see that Quaker Oats is low in total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium. Food labels can claim that a product is "a good source" of fiber if it contributes 10% of your daily value of fiber. The dietary fiber in Quaker Oats exceeds this with a 15% daily value.
You'll notice that there is no % daily value listed for sugar. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that you limit your intake of added sugars to no more than 10% of your calories. For an average person consuming 2,000 calories per day, that would be about 12 teaspoons or packets of sugar a day, or about 50 grams (there are 4 calories per gram of sugar; 50 grams x 4 calories/gram = 200 calories). This refers to all of the sugar you consume during the day and most of it is in packaged and processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages.
Sugar ends up in foods that may surprise you such as ketchup, salad dressings, and breads. If a food doesn't contain a dairy product, most of the sugar listed on the label has been added to the product. Foods containing dairy or fruit will have natural sugars in them (i.e., lactose and fructose), making it more difficult to discern how much of the sugar listed on the label has been added.
If you followed the WHO guidelines and limited your sugar to 12 teaspoons per day, and you're a typical American, you would be cutting your sugar consumption in half. The American Heart Association (AHA) also recommends limiting the amount of all added sugars you consume and their guidelines are even more restrictive:
American Heart Association
Daily Sugar Limit
Women: no more than 100 calories per day, or about 6 teaspoons
Men: 150 calories per day, or about 9 teaspoons
When our kids were young, I would have them compare the amount of sugar in several boxes of cereal to keep them busy during grocery shopping. They were encouraged to find cereal with the lowest amount of sugar and keep in mind that 4 grams of sugar equals one teaspoon. For example, one cup of Honey Nut Cheerios has 9 grams of sugar and that's more than two teaspoons of added sugar. If your teens eat a two cup serving, that would be four teaspoons of added sugar. There were occasional times when I purchased a sugary cereal heavily marketed to children that our kids craved and served it for dessert instead of breakfast.
You can encourage young people to understand Nutrition Facts Labels by having them "Spot the Block" on food packages and make comparisons to find healthier choices. And there are tips for parents on how to use the Nutrition Facts label.
Of course it would be better if we all ate fewer prepared and processed foods and consumed more whole plant-based foods such as fruits and vegetables. If you have a specific food composition question, you can search for detailed nutrient information using the National Nutrient Database and Standard Reference provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Fresh fruit and vegetable composition information is included among more than 8,000 types of food.
Be Well,
Mary
P.S. Please ignore the text box below; your comments are always welcome here.
You'll notice that there is no % daily value listed for sugar. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that you limit your intake of added sugars to no more than 10% of your calories. For an average person consuming 2,000 calories per day, that would be about 12 teaspoons or packets of sugar a day, or about 50 grams (there are 4 calories per gram of sugar; 50 grams x 4 calories/gram = 200 calories). This refers to all of the sugar you consume during the day and most of it is in packaged and processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages.
Sugar ends up in foods that may surprise you such as ketchup, salad dressings, and breads. If a food doesn't contain a dairy product, most of the sugar listed on the label has been added to the product. Foods containing dairy or fruit will have natural sugars in them (i.e., lactose and fructose), making it more difficult to discern how much of the sugar listed on the label has been added.
If you followed the WHO guidelines and limited your sugar to 12 teaspoons per day, and you're a typical American, you would be cutting your sugar consumption in half. The American Heart Association (AHA) also recommends limiting the amount of all added sugars you consume and their guidelines are even more restrictive:
American Heart Association
Daily Sugar Limit
Women: no more than 100 calories per day, or about 6 teaspoons
Men: 150 calories per day, or about 9 teaspoons
When our kids were young, I would have them compare the amount of sugar in several boxes of cereal to keep them busy during grocery shopping. They were encouraged to find cereal with the lowest amount of sugar and keep in mind that 4 grams of sugar equals one teaspoon. For example, one cup of Honey Nut Cheerios has 9 grams of sugar and that's more than two teaspoons of added sugar. If your teens eat a two cup serving, that would be four teaspoons of added sugar. There were occasional times when I purchased a sugary cereal heavily marketed to children that our kids craved and served it for dessert instead of breakfast.
You can encourage young people to understand Nutrition Facts Labels by having them "Spot the Block" on food packages and make comparisons to find healthier choices. And there are tips for parents on how to use the Nutrition Facts label.
Of course it would be better if we all ate fewer prepared and processed foods and consumed more whole plant-based foods such as fruits and vegetables. If you have a specific food composition question, you can search for detailed nutrient information using the National Nutrient Database and Standard Reference provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Fresh fruit and vegetable composition information is included among more than 8,000 types of food.
Be Well,
Mary
P.S. Please ignore the text box below; your comments are always welcome here.
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