Manufacturers are required to provide information on nutrients under a food label’s “Nutrition Facts” panel. When you’re shopping for healthy foods, labels can help you choose between similar products based on calories and certain nutrients (such as fat or protein).
Serving size
Serving size is the most important piece of information. Everything else on the label is based on the serving size. Some products (especially bottled sodas and beverages) may appear to be single-serving, but they can hold two or more servings; be sure to check carefully. Also, if a food label gives a serving size as 1 cup, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the right serving for your weight loss goals. Look at the calories and fat before you decide. If you need to, cut the serving size in half.
Calories
Before you record the number of calories on the label into your Daily Log, be sure it corresponds with your actual serving size. If the label says a serving is 1 cup and you’re having 2 cups, double the calories you record in your Daily Log.
Fat
This number is determined by totaling the grams of saturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, and monounsaturated fat. Pay special attention to the calories on lighter, reduced, low-fat, and fat free products. When the fat is removed from many recipes, salt or sugar is sometimes added back for flavor. This can result in a fat-free or low-fat product that actually has more calories than the regular version. Be careful!
Saturated Fat
Saturated fat is fat that is solid at room temperature. Most saturated fats are derived from animal products, though a few plant oils such as coconut and palm oil are also saturated. Examples of saturated fat include butter, chicken skin, visible fat on meats, lard, and shortening. Less than one-third of your daily fat grams should be from saturated fats. The saturated fat from animal foods is the primary source of cholesterol in American diets.
Sodium: For most people, the daily recommendation for sodium is 2,400 milligrams. Light in sodium means this product has half the sodium of its counterparts.
Total carbohydrate
This number is calculated by totaling the grams of complex carbohydrates, fiber, and sugars, that means there are more “good carbs” which help tame your hunger. Good carbs can be found in fruits and vegetables.
Dietary fiber: Fiber is found in plant foods, but not in animal foods. Unless you’re on a fiber restricted diet, aim for at least 25 to 35 grams of fiber per day.
Sugar
The grams of sugar in a food can be naturally occurring, added, or both. Check the ingredient list to find out. The total grams of carbohydrate in a food serving should be more than twice the amount of sugar grams. Be careful with “reduced-sugar” labels because some products, such as cereal, sport this label because some of the sugar has been replaced with other carbs. The caloric content may be the same, so there isn’t necessarily a huge improvement.
Protein
If a food has more than 9 grams of protein per serving, it’s considered a high-protein food, and protein is key to your weight loss. Foods high in protein include cheese, dried beans and legumes, eggs, fish, meat, milk, nuts, poultry, soybeans, and yogurt.
Ingredient List
The ingredients are listed in order of decreasing weight in the food product. If the list begins with sugar (such as white sugar, corn syrup, or sucrose) fats and oils, it’s probably not a good product choice for our diet program. Also, a shorter ingredient list often means the product is more natural. A long list of ingredients with a plethora of chemicals and preservatives is probably a good product to leave on the store’s shelf.
Key Words For Understanding Labels
• Calorie-free means that a food has less than 5 calories per serving.
• Fat free means that a product contains no more than a half gram of fat per serving.
• Good source of fiber means that the food product has 2.5 grams to 4.9 grams of fiber per serving.
• High-fiber means that one serving has at least 5 grams of dietary fiber.
• High-protein means a food has more than 9 grams of protein per serving.
• Light in sodium means this product has half the sodium of its counterparts.
• Light means a product has 50% less fat
• Low-calorie means it has no more than 40 calories per serving (except sugar substitutes).
• Low-fat means there are no more than 3 grams of fat per serving
• More fiber or added fiber means the product has at least 2.5 grams of fiber per serving.
• Reduced calorie means the food contains at least 25% fewer calories than the regular version.
• Reduced-fat products have 25% less fat than the regular counterpart
• Reduced-sugar means a food contains at least 25% less sugar per serving than the regular version.
• Sugar-free means there’s less than half a gram of sugar per serving.