Tips on How to Read a Nutrition Label
Serving Size
When you are figuring out how to read a nutrition label, the first line you’ll look at will be the serving size and the number of servings. This is the spot where many people get confused. After all, if the line by the word “calories” says “100,” they will assume that if they eat the entire package, or even what they consider a “serving,” they are only consuming 100 calories. In truth, even a small package that you might consider “one serving” can have two, two and one-half, or even three servings in it.
To figure out how much of each nutrient you are consuming, you’ll need to figure out how much of the package you plan on eating. For example, if you’re making a can of soup and plan on eating the entire can, but there are 2.5 servings in each can, you’ll need to multiply the number of calories, fat, and other nutrients by 2.5 in order to figure out just how much of each you are consuming.
Calories
Americans tend to consume more calories than are necessary, without consuming enough of various other nutrients. Although many people can consume 2,000 calories a day to maintain their weight, those who are looking to lose weight should consume far less than that. A hundred grams per serving is a moderate amount of calories. If an item has much more than that (e.g., 400 grams), it probably has more calories per serving than you should be consuming regularly, or at all if you are dieting. Calories are the main factor in losing or gaining weight, and consumption of two many calories is linked to obesity problems.
Fat, Cholesterol, and Sodium
These are the nutrients that should be limited as much as possible. Eating too much of any of these nutrients can lead to an increased risk of heart disease, some cancers, hypertension, or other chronic ailments. Saturated and trans fat are specified on the nutrition label because they are particularly detrimental to your health, if consumed in high amounts.
The nutrients in this category are listed by both amount and percent daily value. If you’re not sure how much of each nutrient is considered “too much,” focus on the percent daily value in the rightmost column. If the percent daily value is 5 percent or less, it is relatively little, compared to the amount of the nutrient that you can safely consume in a day. If the percent daily value is 25 percent or more, it represents a large chunk of how much of the nutrient you are supposed to eat in a day. Remember to multiply the daily value (as well as the actual amount) by the number of servings you are planning on eating.
Nutrients
Important nutrients listed on the nutrition label are fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. The FDA says most Americans do not consume enough of these nutrients, so choose foods that contain large amounts of each of these. Although there is no amount listed next to each of these nutrients (except for dietary fiber), you can figure out how much of each nutrient the food has in it by the percent daily value listed next to it.
Carbohydrates and Sugar
These listings are not so helpful, as they do not differentiate between fruit sugar and refined sugar, or between whole grains and refined grains. Fruit sugar and whole grains are much healthier than refined sugars and grains. To find out which type of carbohydrates the food contains, you’ll have to look at the ingredients list.
Ingredients List
One of the keys to knowing how to read a nutrition label is making sure to scan the ingredients list. The ingredients are listed in order, based on which makes up the largest amount of the food. In other words, if “sugar” is the first ingredient in the list, there is more sugar in the product than any other ingredient. If the product seems to have whole wheat in it, but the first two ingredients are various types of refined wheat flour (with whole wheat hidden farther down on the ingredient list), you’re not consuming as much whole grain as you think you are. This way, whether you’re buying food for healthy and budget-friendly meals, a road trip, or a picnic, you’ll know exactly what you’re putting in your mouth.
References
https://www.fda.gov/food/labelingnutrition/consumerinformation/ucm078889.htm
https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/how-read-nutrition-label
This post is part of the series: Healthy Choices On the Go
When you’re on the go, it’s easy to fall into the trap of making unhealthy food choices. The articles in this series protect you against that by giving you ideas of healthy and delicious food options you can take with you when you leave your home.