Guide to Reading Nutrition Labels

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Before trying to decipher the nutrition facts label on foods, here are some quick terms to know!

Low fat: 3 grams of less
Trans fat free: less than 0.5 g of trans fat
High fiber: 5 grams of more of fiber
Low sodium: 140 mg or less of sodium
For every 3 grams of fat there can be 1 gram of saturated fat: 3 to 1 rule

Some nutrition labels can be very confusing with the names of ingredients listed. Some "nick names" for saturated fats when reading the labels are palm kernel oil, shortening, lard, coconut oil, palm oil, and fully hydrogenated oil. A key word to look for in the ingredients label for trans fat is partially hydrogenated oil. 

Another tip for reading cheese and dairy labels is to always try to drink fat free milk or if need be 1%.  Also look for cheese that is no more than  2% milk fat.

Round or loin red meat cuts are usually best.  Look for no more than 3-5 grams of fat/ounce.  When looking at sodium, it is important to consume no more than 2300 mg/day but those with hypertension, diabetes, and renal disease should try to consume no more than 1500 mg/day.

When reading labels that contain "whole grain" you want to look for the first word on ingredient list to be "whole" followed by the "grain" such as  wheat, oats, rice, or corn.  Make sure to always look at added sugars on the labels and remember that one teaspoon = 4 grams of sugar.

Hope this helps when looking at nutrition labels!

IB

Reference:

Karen Clifford. (2018). Reading Labels [Powerpoint].
 

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