A Healthy HabitREADING FOOD

LABELS

Sadia Shaukat

Sodexo Dietetic Intern, 2013

Nutrition Facts/Food label• Required by Food and

Drug administration on most package foods and beverages.

• Provide information about food’s nutrient contents such as fats, sodium, fiber….

Why to read label?• Can help you make healthier choices

• Can compare different foods

• Eating a healthy diet can help you reduce risk factors for many diseases.

• Important if you need to follow special diet

• Contains information about food allergies

Start • Serving Size– Tells the measurement of one

serving

– All the nutrients on the label are based on this amount.

• Servings per container– How many serving are in the

package

This package contains 2 cups of mac & cheese

What is the serving size of your snack?

Total calories• Provides measure of how much energy

this food is providing

• Calories comes from Carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

• Calories from fat is part of total calories.

General Guide to Calories

• 40 Calories is low

• 100 Calories is moderate

• 400 Calories or more is high

Calories per serving• To calculate the amount of calories or a

nutrient in more than one serving:

Number of servings X Calories or nutrients

Example:

How many calories are in whole package of mac & cheese?

1 serving= 250 2 serving= 500

Remember: the number of servings you consume determines the number of calories you actually

eat

How many calories are in one serving?

How many calories are in the entire package?

Limit these nutrients

Get enough of these

Limit These Nutrients• Eating too much fat, saturated fat, trans

fat, cholesterol, or sodium may increase your risk of certain chronic diseases, like heart disease, some cancers, or high blood pressure.

• Total fat: 56-78grams/day

• Saturated fat: no more than 16 grams/day

• Trans fat: less than 2 grams/day

• Cholesterol: less than 200 mg/day

Total Fat• Total fat includes- Saturated, Trans fat and

unsaturated fat

• Labeling unsaturated fat is voluntary

• Limit your fat intake to 25-35% of the calories you eat.

• Total fat: 56-78grams/day for 2000 kcal/day

• Try to pick foods with heart-healthy fats

Choose foods with less than 5 grams of total fats per serving

How many grams of fat are in one serving? How many grams of fat are in the entire package?

Saturated fats• Consume less than 7% of calories from

saturated fats

• Saturated fat: no more than 16 grams/day for 2000kcal/day

Choose foods with less than 3 g per serving of saturated fats

Trans Fats• Trans fat: less than 2 grams/day

• “0” gram trans fats: means food contain less than 0.5 grams of trans fats per serving.

• Food contains “0 g” of trans fat, but includes “partially hydrogenated oil” in the ingredient list

Choose foods with zero gram trans fat and also read the ingredient list

Are there any trans fats?

Cholesterol • Cholesterol: less than 200 mg/day

• Found in animal based food products.

Sodium (salt) • Limit Sodium to 1500 mg/day

• People without heart disease or risk factors for heart disease can have up to 2400 mg/day

Choose low sodium foods, a foods is considered high sodium if it has

480 mg or more per serving.

Total Carbohydrates • Total carbohydrates include dietary

fiber, sugars and other carbohydrates.

• Eating too many carbohydrates can raise triglycerides

• Aim to get 25-30g dietary fiber per day

Choose foods with at least 5 grams fiber per day

Protein • This number provides

information about how much protein is in one serving

• Measured in grams

• Needs are very individualized depending on age, gender, activity level and health.

Get Enough Of These• Get 100 percent of the fiber, vitamins

and other nutrients you need every day.

• Eating enough of these nutrients can improve your health and help reduce the risk of some diseases and conditions.

Percent Daily Values• The % Daily Values (%DVs) are based

on the Daily Value recommendations for key nutrients but only for a 2,000 calorie daily diet.

• Your daily needs may be higher or lower depending upon age, gender, activity.

5%DV or less is low and 20%DV or more is high

Which nutrients have a high % Daily Value (20% or more)? Which nutrients have a low % Daily Value (5% or less)?

Do you think this is a healthy snack?

Foot Notes • Lower part of nutrition label

• It will always be the same

• Shows recommended dietary advice for all Americans

• Based on 2000 and 2500 kcal/day

These values may be higher or lower depending upon you age, gender,

activity and health

Ingredient list • First thing first: the biggest ingredient must be

listed at top

• If the first ingredients listed come from sugar, salt, fats & oils, food is probably not a good choice.

• Shorter is better: the longer the ingredient list, the more processing and less natural the food.

Food Claims • In addition to the Nutrition Facts label, a lot of

foods today also come with nutrient content claims provided by the manufacturer.

• These claims are typically featured in ads for the foods or in the promotional copy on the food packages themselves.

• They are strictly defined by the FDA.

If a food claims to be…

It means that one serving of the product contains…….

Calorie free Less than 5 calories

Sugar free Less than 0.5 g of sugar

FAT

Fat free Less than 0.5g of fat

Low fat 3 g of fat or less

Reduced fat At least 25% less fat than the regular product

Low in saturated fat 1 gram of saturated fat or less, with not more than 15 percent of the calories coming from saturated fat

Lean Less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat and 95 milligrams of cholesterol

Extra lean Less than 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat and 95 milligrams of cholesterol

Light (lite) At least one-third fewer calories or no more than half the fat of the regular product, or no more than half the sodium of the regular product

If food claims to be.

It means that one serving of the product contains….

Cholesterol

Cholesterol free Less than 2 milligrams of cholesterol and 2 grams (or less) of saturated fat

Low cholesterol 20 or fewer milligrams of cholesterol and 2 grams or less of saturated fat

Reduced cholesterol At least 25 percent less cholesterol than the regular product and 2 grams or less of saturated fat

Sodium

Sodium free or no sodium

Less than 5 milligrams of sodium and no sodium chloride in ingredients

Very low sodium 35 milligrams or less of sodium

Low sodium 140 milligrams or less of sodium

Reduced or less sodium At least 25 percent less sodium than the regular product

Fiber

High fiber 5 grams or more of fiber

Good source of fiber 2.5 to 4.9 grams of fiber

Food Claims: Quick guide • “Free” means a food has the least possible amount

of the specified nutrient.

• “Very Low” and “Low” means the food has a little more than foods labeled “Free.”

• “Reduced” or “Less” mean the food has 25 percent less of a specific nutrient than the regular version of the food.

Summary• Choose foods that are low in fat, especially

saturated fat

• Choose foods with zero grams of trans fats, also read ingredient list and look for hydrogenated oils

• Avoid high sodium foods

• Choose foods with no added sugar

• Choose foods high in dietary fiber and vitamins

• 5%DV or less is low and 20%DV or more is high

• Choose foods with short ingredient lists when possible

QUESTIONS????

EAT RIGHT®THANK YOU!