Get The Facts On Reading Food Nutrition LabelsNeed help trying to figure out all the food nutrition labels? Here's a little help: 1. Always check the serving size & servings per container when looking at food nutrition labels. Often times something will seem like it is low calorie or low in fat because the serving size is very small! For example, a serving of ice cream may only be 200 calories, but the serving size might only be a small scoop (way less than you will probably eat)!! 2. Check the percent of fat calories carefully. The FDA recommends only consuming 30% or less of your total calories for the day from fat. And fat calories can add up fast! There are 2 main types of fat: "GOOD FATS" like unsaturated fat, monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. Your body needs some of this fat every day to work properly. Foods like avocados and salmon are great sources of healthy fats! "BAD FATS" like saturated and trans fats (look for the words partially hydrogenated oils listed in the ingredients). These fats can lead to heart disease and other health issues, so try to avoid them! 3. Look for foods with at least 5 grams or more of fiber. The average American does not get enough fiber in his or her diet. Men should consume 35 grams per day and women should consume 25 grams a day. 4. Ingredients on food packaging are listed in descending order by weight which means the first ingredient is the biggest portion of the food. So, look for words like Whole Grain instead of enriched or bleached flour when buying bread, cereal and pasta. Also, high fructose corn syrup is code for sugar, so avoid foods with this as one of the first few ingredients. 6. Words like "Made With Whole Grains" or "Fortified with Vitamin C" usually mean that most of the nutrients were stripped away during manufacturing and just a small amount of that ingredient has been added back during processing. Be sure to check the side of the box to see what you are really getting! 7. Meat can have some very confusing labels. Here is the bottom line: ***ORGANIC: certified by the USDA, grown without antibiotics, animals have access to the outdoors and no animal by-products are used in the feed FREE RANGE: USDA certified if animal has access to open air for at least 5 minutes a day, this does not certify that the animal had access to open-air for an entire lifespan RAISED WITHOUT ANTIBIOTICS: not certified by the USDA, arsenic drugs may still be used (not considered anitobiotics) HORMONE-FREE: seen on chicken labeling, all chicken in the United States must be hormone-free per USDA regulations, basically a meaningless statement
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