Read a U.S. Nutrition Facts Food Label
The label required on food products always appears on the back of the product being sold. A company may make dubious health claims on the front of its package, but it can't mess with the claims made on a U.S. Food and Drug Administration Nutrition Facts label. Not surprisingly, many people find this nutrition label confusing, if they find it at all.
Instructions
1. Don't be deceived by the listed serving size. Take into account that the food manufacturer might be listing a smaller serving size than the average person would eat to make the product appear more healthy. For instance, a serving size of cheese crackers might be listed as 15 grams, which is not even 1 oz. Most people would eat a handful of cheese crackers, which is more like 30 grams. Therefore it would be necessary to double all of the nutritional info listed on the label to get an accurate account of of the actual serving size you are consuming.
2. Look at the calories listed. Compare those calories with the calories from fat listed just to the right. If the calories from fat comes to more than 30 percent of the total calories per serving size, it is a high-fat food that you should not overindulge in. Doctors recommend a diet with less than 30 percent of total calories coming from fat.
3. Know good fat from bad fat. Not all fat is bad, and not all fat is required to be listed on a label. Total fat and trans fat should be listed. It's a good thing trans fat is listed because it is the worst kind of fat a person can eat and should be avoided. Trans fat is synthetic fat, created to help food keep longer on the shelf, and usually shows up in junk and fast food. Saturated fat is also something that should be limited because it is a coagulating, artery-clogging kind of fat. Polyunsaturated fats are more healthy and found in natural, unprocessed foods.
4. Check out the percentages listed on the label. These are the "% Daily Value" or RDA (recommended daily allowance) for the item listed. Not all fields in the label have percentages. Items such as trans fat and sugars don't have percentages because they are not nutrients a person needs more of. RDAs refer to the vitamins and minerals in a food and are listed below the second large black bar on the label. If a food product has less than 2 percent of the RDAs of essential vitamins and minerals there will be no listing, just an asterisk and a note saying there aren't enough of these nutrients to be listed.
5. Learn the items you want more and less of on a nutrition facts label. Limit fat, cholesterol, sugars and sodium. The average modern diet in Western culture is already overloaded with these items. Get more fiber, vitamins and minerals. If the label is large enough, it will contain a footnote to help you with the daily values. This footnote is based on a 2,000-calorie daily diet, and it is the same on every product it appears on. It is not specific to the product. Use this footnote as a guide to eating a healthier diet.
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