Reading Food Labels

Reading Food Labels
Wrapped around almost every packaged food is a great source of information- the Food Label. Today's food labels carry up to four different kinds of health information, and each can steer you toward your health goals. To ensure you're getting all the nutrients you need, follow these great tips on how Food Labels Can Give Shortcuts to Better Health:

• The Nutrition Facts panel, present on foods since 1994, is a one-glance method for fitting food into an eating plan. Look for serving size and servings per container. The serving size is an estimated "portion". Try using this serving size guide to determine if you eat more or less than a serving. The nutrition information on the remainder of the label applies to one serving. You'll also find the number of calories in a single serving and how many of those calories come from fat.

• Nutrient Amounts are next. The nutrients selected are those that relate to today's most important health issues. Fat, saturated fat, and sodium are there because people often eat too much. Your goal is no more than 100% of daily value of each nutrient for the day. Fiber, Vitamin A and C and calcium are there because they are often lacking in our diet. You goal for these is to consume at least 100% of daily value each day.

• The ingredient list tells us what ingredients make up the product, with the ingredients listed from most to least. This is vital information if you have food intolerance.

• A nutrition description such as "high fiber" or "low in fat" helps identify foods that can match your nutrition goals. A health claim describes a potential health benefit, such as "high in calcium to help reduce risk for osteoporosis". These are not always regulated, so be sure to check labels to truly understand

How Can You Use food labels?

• Compare the nutrition of similar foods
• Make long-term choices to include a variety of food.
• Learn which ingredients are in the food we choose
• Reinforce portion control and support a choice to eat a lower calorie diet.

Source: Robyn J. DeBell , M.S., Registered Dietitian and Nutrition Educator, Scottsdale Healthcare Shea

Tips for reading labels and buying smart:
Here's a good way to read labels to see how a product fits into your performance:

1) First check the SERVING SIZE.
The label tells you how much is in one serving. The amount of nutrients listed are what you will find in one serving. This serving size may be different from your usual serving.

2) There's also TOTAL FAT.
It's measured in grams. These chips have 10 grams of fat in a serving. Three of those grams are saturated fat, the least desirable type of fat. How does that fit into the number of grams of fat a day you want to limit yourself to?

3) There's CALORIES FROM FAT.
There are 90 calories from fat in one serving of these chips (compare this to the total calories per serving)...and one serving would use up 15% of the maximum amount of fat recommended for a 2000 calorie diet.

4) Look at CARBOHYDRATES, the premium energy nutrient.

A good performance food has the most grams of carbohydrate and the least grams of fat. One serving of chips has 15 grams of carbohydrate and 10 grams of fat...not only too much fat in too little food, but not enough carbohydrates to sustain you. Make chips a treat...not a meal.

5) Now look at % DAILY VALUE.
% Daily Values help you know if a product is high or low in a nutrient. The % Daily Values show how a food fits into a 2,000 calorie diet that meets the Dietary Guidelines. Daily Values are nutrient standards set by the government and are based on current nutrition recommendations. Nutrient needs for a Performance Diet may be more than the Daily Values on the label.

6) Remember PROTEIN.
These chips have 2 grams of protein in a serving. Protein should make up 12-15% of a performance diet - between 60 and 150 grams of protein a day.

7) Don't forget VITAMINS & MINERALS.
Vitamins A and C, calcium and iron are required to be on the food label. They are listed by percent of their recommended daily value.

8 ) Then finally CALORIES PER GRAM.
Some labels tell you number of calories in a gram of fat, carbohydrate, and protein. See how many more calories in a gram of fat than in a gram of carbohydrate! Remember:

• PROTEIN has 4 calories per gram
• CARBS have 4 calories per gram
• FAT has 9 calories per gram
• ALCOHOL has 7 calories per gram

Remember that if you have more than a single label serving, you are eating more of everything.