Reading Food Labels
• The serving size and amount of servings per container is your real key to knowing how many calories and other nutrients are in the foods you eat.
• Understanding the amount of Total Fat in the foods is important.
• Also, keep in mind that unsaturated fats are more healthy than saturated and trans fats.
• Carbohydrates should be an important source of calories in your diet.
Good Carbs:• Whole grain breads• Whole grain cereals• Beans• Brown Rice• Potatoes• pasta
Bad Carbs: • Avoid foods with
added sugar like: corn syrup, dextrose, sucrose, etc.
• Food labels can also help you find foods that are high in certain vitamins and minerals.
• Like, fat you should limit the amount of cholesterol and sodium in your diet.
• Is this food product high or low for both cholesterol and sodium?
% Daily Value or %DV shows how much of the daily recommended nutrients are provided.
% DV is based on a 2,000 calorie per day diet.
Food Calorie
• The amount of digestively available energy that will raise the temperature of one kilogram of water one degree Celsius.
• Calories are found in proteins, fats, carbohydrates, etc.
Food Calorie
• Calories are shown on a food label in two different ways:– Total Calories– Calories from fat
Food Calorie
• For every one gram of protein, there are four calories.
Which one of these foods has the least calories from protein?
2
3
Adapted from files at: http://pediatrics.about.com/od/nutrition/ss/food_labels_7.htm
Check out your favorite food labels: http://www.dietfacts.com/list.asp?start=D