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How To Read Food Labels

When looking to make a health-focused lifestyle change, one of the simplest, and most important things you can do is to learn how to read food labels.

There are likely several grocery items masquerading as healthy options hiding in your kitchen or pantry right now. We’ve all been fooled by them, so don’t feel bad. Food manufacturers have become very creative with marketing, adding buzzwords and trending diet labels that try to trick you into thinking the products you’re buying are healthier than they really are. These products are often nowhere near having the nutritional value needed to get and stay healthy, but the marketing on the packaging will have you thinking you’re making a great choice.

As we peruse the grocery aisle, common claims such as low-fat, no sugar, and all-natural, often catch our eye, but it’s not until you actually turn over the package and look at the nutrition label and ingredients do you get a real grasp on the frankinfood you likely have in your hand. The good news is learning how to read food labels isn’t challenging once you know what to look for. Below are some key tips to take with you the next time you go grocery shopping.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Updates the Nutrition Facts Label

In 2020 the FDA updated the standards for the Nutrition Facts label for the first time in over 20 years. [Personal comment here – way to stay on top of ever-changing science and research FDA, maybe just a little slow to react.] But a change is a change and we can be excited to see that.

Below you can see the updates made to the nutrition facts label. The FDA increased the size of the font for calories and serving size, updated the daily values for some nutrition categories, and added the “added sugar” and vitamins and minerals lines, which of all the changes, is probably the best and most useful update.

How To Read Food Labels

There are several things to look at when reading the label so I’ve made a list of things to consider when reviewing the label:

Top 1/3 – Serving Size and Calories Per Serving

This will tell you how many servings are in the package, and the calories you would eat if you ate just one serving of that food. This seems straightforward, but you’d be surprised by how many people think it’s total calories for the entire package, or eat 3-4 servings in one sitting because the serving size is smaller than one would expect.

One example of this used as a marketing scheme is cookies or crackers. You’ll see the calories listed on the box as 70-110. That doesn’t seem that bad right, but when you look at the serving size it will say 2 cookies or 3 crackers. When was the last time you only ate 3 crackers in a sitting? So in actuality when you eat your 6 crackers you’re likely eating 140 calories.

The other thing to consider is that calories aren’t all the same (this is why calorie counting as a diet option doesn’t work.) The way 100 calories of mixed greens impact and are processed by your body is completely different than 100 calories from enriched flour. The same amount of calories, both carbohydrates but have completely different health impacts. So calories aren’t always as important as they seem to be. You can use them as a general guide though.

Middle 1/3 – Macronutrient Daily Values

In this section, you’ll find the percentage of a daily value for each macronutrient. This is based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet. This is an average for the population, though the calorie intake will vary greatly from person to person and even day to day. Some highly active people need to eat far more than 2,000 calories per day, and others who are smaller or less active may only need to eat 1,500 calories.

Macronutrients are types of foods that we generally require in large amounts in our diet. I say generally because alcohol is also a macronutrient and we don’t require any alcohol in our diet to be healthy. The big three are Fat, Protein, and Carbohydrates.

Fat is not the enemy!

Fat is an extremely important macronutrient and must be part of your diet to stay healthy both physically and mentally. Avoid Trans Fat! As of 2021, it should no longer be found in food products thanks to a ban by the FDA. Fully Saturated Fat has received a bad rep due to botched research. You can learn more about that here. And Poly- and Monounsaturated Fats are healthy.

Carbohydrates come in many shapes and sizes and are not all made the same.

There are complex carbohydrates which are things like fruits and vegetables. Then you have simple carbohydrates which are things like sugar and flowers. This is simplifying it a bit, but for the sake of keeping this article under 20,000 words, it’s a good general rule of thumb. Complex carbohydrates are usually filled with fiber, vitamins, and minerals. They are key to good health and should be eaten often. Simple carbohydrates are often highly processed which removes most if not all of the fiber, vitamins, and minerals from the food making it less than ideal.

Fiber is key to a well-functioning gut and digestive system.

Total Sugar vs Added Sugar – Total means just that, the total amount of sugar found in one serving of the food product. Added Sugar means the amount of sugar the manufacturer added to the food product to enhance the taste. This means the sugar did not naturally come from one of the ingredients, it had to be added in. The less sugar the better.

Protein is our friend and frankly the building block of life.

We must get sufficient protein in order to keep our bones, muscles, and body overall healthy. Most Americans eat less protein than they should day to day. Protein can be found in meat and plants, but usually in a lesser amount.

Botton 1/3 – Vitamins and Minerals

In this section, you’ll find the percentage of the daily value of the vitamins and minerals in this food product. On some packages, you may see 7 or 8 lines on others you may only see 2 or 3 lines. That’s because the nutrition label only lists the vitamins and minerals in that product. Vitamins and minerals usually won’t be listed if they aren’t included in the product. There is an exception for four. Vitamin D, Iron, Calcium, and Potassium will always be listed even if they aren’t included in the food product.

how to read food labels

Ingredients and Allergies

Either below or somewhere near the Nutrition Facts label, you’ll find a list of ingredients on the packaging. The ingredients are listed from greatest to smallest in the amount used in the product. For example, in the image above you’ll see unbleached enriched flour (wheat flour) as the first ingredient listed. This means that there is more of this ingredient than any other ingredient in the product. You’ll see natural and artificial flavors listed last. This means there are fewer flavor additives than anything else in the package.

The “May Contain” and “Contains” sections are specifically there to bring attention to ingredients that many people have allergies to. You’ll usually see things like eggs, dairy products, nuts, soy, and products containing gluten listed here as those are the most common food allergies.

I hope this has been a helpful overview of food labels. There is so much more to learn. Be sure to check out our food editorial section and our health and wellness editorial section to continue on your learning journey around how to read food labels.

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