NUTRITION FACTS LABELS

WHAT IS THE NUTRITION FACTS LABEL?

• Have you ever studied the label or been taught about what the numbers mean?

• What does the label tell us about the food?

THEY TELL US ABOUT THE FOOD!

• Help to determine nutritional content of a food, and what’s in the box or package!

• The main characters: Fat, Carbohydrate, Protein, and Calories

• Help to decide if they can be sold in the schools

WHAT IS ON THE LABEL?

• Serving size

• Servings per container

• Calories

• Fat

• Carbohydrate

• Protein

• *based on a 2000 calorie diet

• Labels can tell you how healthy or unhealthy a food is for you as well!

• Let’s look at some examples of different labels…

5/20 RULE

• Less than 5% Daily Value of a nutrient is considered “low”

• For things you want less of: saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, and sodium

• More than 20% Daily Value is considered “high”

• For things you want more of: fiber, vitamins A & C, calcium, and iron

A) Mint gumB) Diet CokeC) Chocolate cakeD) Hot Pocket

A) Beef jerkyB) Yoplait yogurtC) Ruffles chipsD) Whole milk

A) Wheat breadB) Apple juiceC) Hamburger pattyD) Peanuts

A) Dr PepperB) Fruit SnacksC) PieD) Hi-C juice drink

A) Snickers barB) Hawaiian punchC) Go-GurtD) Mountain Dew

SMART SNACKS

• 1. must be whole grain rich OR first ingredient must be a fruit, vegetable, dairy, or protein food, OR contain 10% DV of either Calcium, potassium, vitamin D, or fiber

• 2. less than 200 calories

• 3. less than 35% total fat, 10% saturated fat, and 0 grams trans fat

• 4. less than 230 mg sodium

• 5. less than 35% of weight from sugar

SMART SNACKS

• <35% fat

• Calories from fat/total calories = % total fat

• <35% sugar

• Sugar grams/total grams (weight of the product) = sugar, and can’t be more than 15 g.