Week # 4 - What's in a Label?

Have you ever picked up a bag of greasy, potato chips and tried to make sense of the nutritional label? Well besides the fact that most information on that label will subtly read DO NOT EAT ME, it helps to know specifically what to look for in order to make better dietary decisions. 

Let’s break down some of the important elements that make up a label by looking at an example:

 1. First, start at the top. The most important part of the nutritional label is the serving size. This piece of information will help you make sense of the rest of the label since all of the nutrients listed on the label relate to one serving of that food item. A bag of potato chips may say it only has 100 calories per serving, but the serving size could be 5 chips. 

2. Next, check out the calories. This will give you an idea for how many calories are in one serving size and how many calories are from fat.  Calories provide a measure of how much energy is in a serving of food. Calories from fat are just that…calories only from fat. Fat is the most energy dense nutrient providing nine calories for each gram of fat consumed. Some labels don’t list the calories from fat but it’s simple to calculate on your own. In the example above, there are twelve grams of fat. Take that number, multiply it by nine and you get (approximately) 110 calories from fat. You can also calculate the calories you get from protein and carbohydrates. Both contain four calories per gram. 

3. The nutrients shown in this section are those that should be consumed in limited amounts. Make sure your food contains fewer saturated and trans fats and relatively more polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Also avoid foods that are high in cholesterol, sodium and sugar. 

4. Some of the more important nutrients in the food are listed in the section shown in green.  The amount of fiber, vitamins and minerals you consume should be based on your own personal daily caloric recommendation.    These should be consumed in enough amounts to improve and maintain health and reduce the risk for diseases. Notice that dietary fibers are one portion of total carbohydrates. The total carbohydrate category includes everything from complex carbohydrates (providing great nutritional value), such as whole grains, to simple carbohydrates (providing little nutritional value) like glucose.  

5. The footnote section of the label serves as a guide showing the percent daily nutritional values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. 

6. The actual Percent Daily Value calculations shows how much of a specific nutrient one serving of the product has as a percentage of how much you should eat during your entire day. Again, this label is based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet and should be adjusted accordingly based on your caloric needs. 

Collectively reading a food label takes time and practice. Hopefully this example serves as a starting point to get you in the habit of checking out the label before you eat what’s inside.