I have received several requests to help understand what the heck is going on with nutrition fact labels. It can be extremely overwhelming process trying to decipher this coded language that is just slapped on a vast majority of our food items. The way that I like to look at nutrition labels is starting from the top down. If I am wanting to fact check claims like “whole-grain bread”; I skip right to the ingredients list.
It is important also to understand that while you are looking at a nutritional value of a certain, you will be eating more throughout the day. Also, you could be pairing something with what you are analyzing. As you read through this article please understand that these are general recommendations. Your individual needs could be very different. Specified desired values could also change based on if you plan to pair the nutritional label food with other foods. I want you to understand that you can balance and look at your diet intake not only per food item but as an overall meal, overall daily intake, and overall weekly in-take. There is still a need to understand what it is that you are eating and what the heck those labels are saying. Take the knowledge that I am sharing and know that we should stay away from being hypercritical of dietary intake and becoming obsessive.
Understanding daily value % It is important to know that the daily value percentage is based off of a 2000 calorie diet. What that means is that if you eat more or less than the 2000 calorie mark your percentages for everything will change based off of what you actually consume. With that be said, 2000 calories is a good average of needs to go off of and therefore should work just fine for most people’s dietary needs. In general, anything under 5% is low and anything over 20% is high.
First, I look at the serving sizes- I want to realistically know if I agree with what is considered a serving size. I want to anticipate if I need to be factoring in additional servings to meet what I want to serve myself. There are regulations now that require nutritional content to be displayed to meet what the standard consumer would consider a serving size. I.E One 12oz can of soda should be listed as a serving size of one due to the fact most people will drink an entire can in one sitting. However, I have a love for flavored pretzel bits and a serving size is ¼ cup. I am probably going to eat a ½-1 cup and want to know what that looks for me.
Calories- Honestly, I am not a big fan of calorie counting, however I do check this just to make sure there isn’t a big shock or awe factor. When looking for a snacks, I personally am looking at roughly 200-300 calories. If it is a meal, I am looking at around 500-700 calories per serving. These numbers are assuming that the only thing I am eating is what is packaged. They are also based off the 2000ish calorie goal with eating 5 times a day (3 meals, 2 snacks). This is part of the reason I am providing a range. It is important to consider things like, “am I pairing this with something?” or “Is the calorie content so high because the fat content is high?”. I also fluctuate from these numbers because I honor cravings and hunger which may not fit in some pretty little calculation/recommendation.
Salt- It is easy to go over on this. Daily recommended salt intake is a 1500 mg minimum with a 2300 mg maximum. I like to keep salt less than 800 mg for “meals” and less than 500 mg for “snack” items.
Protein- This can be a wide range and truthfully Americans tend to over-consume proteins. Therefore, its not a major concern unless you are accustomed to a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. I like for protein to be present in all my meals and snacks but again, this may also be accomplished through pairing as well. Daily value percentage for proteins will generally not be listed on nutrition labels, so we will look at grams. Per meal, protein can be aimed to roughly 20g-30g.
Fat- This can get really complicated but lets keep it simple. There is total fat, saturated fat and trans-fat listed on virtually all American food labels. Sometimes there are more types of fats listed, but let’s just focus on the one’s I have mentioned. Total fat it is easiest to look at the daily value. Aim for 10% or lower. We want our saturated and trans fats to be very low (less than 22g per day). Ideally, no trans-fats are present at all. Note: If you eat something that has coconut oil or animal product like beef jerky it is going to be higher in saturated fats and that is ok. Remember that this can be balanced out throughout the day. If you want beef jerky, have it.
Carbohydrates- Carbohydrates are something that many people have become afraid of. I really encourage keeping carbohydrates an integral part of the diet. I would say that these can go as high as 20% of the daily value per label. General daily recommendations for carbohydrate consumption is near 50%-60% of total daily caloric intake. This daily intake is also considering that fruits and vegetables are part of the diet as carbohydrates. Take home with carbs is that there is room in this range to play around.
Sugar- This is a tricky one and companies can have fun trying to hide it through different terminology. There must be an understanding of what you are looking at. If it is something like a trail mix that has dried fruit, it is going to have a higher sugar content but that doesn’t mean that it is added sugar. Added sugar is something that we should try to keep low. Try and keep it below 10% daily value. Remember if you are looking at eating something with added sugar like your favorite candy bar, that is fine. Do not deprive yourself but be aware of how that fits into your day or even into your week. I like to also factor fiber content in when looking at sugar because fiber will help slow a blood sugar spike. A spike can lead to a crash or “mid-day hump”. High blood sugar also can lead to desensitized cell response for sugar uptake (type 2 diabetes).
Fiber- We love fiber! A little goes a long way. 10% daily value of fiber in a food would be great but realistically, most Americans are clawing throughout the day for every gram. The goal is for women under 50 years of age to hit about 25g of fiber a day and if they are over 50 years of age strive for 21g. Men’s recommendations are 38g under 50 years of age and 30g over 50 years of age. It can be surprisingly hard to meet this recommendation, but we aim for the more the better when looking at nutrition labels. *side note if you’re consuming a low fiber diet do not overnight spike to you’re the daily recommendations as this can cause abdominal discomfort. Slowly increase fiber intake over the course of a week or two with the goal of meeting daily recommendation.
Bonuses: On packaged foods I look at the nutrients as bonuses. Some may think of it as a “bank for your buck”. Anything with Vitamin D, potassium, iron or calcium are great. Most Americans are deficient in these areas so if you see them as part of your label that is something to consider. Many labels will also include Vitamin A and C as they used to be something that the majority of American’s were deficient in.
Ingredients Lists- I am mainly looking at the first three ingredients on all foods labels. The ingredients are listed in accordance with weight. The heaviest (most present) ingredients are listed first and then descend from there. For example, if something says “whole grain” on it, I am looking at those first three ingredients to see if they have grain’s such as whole-wheat, whole-barley, whole-oats listed. If it does not match what I am wanting in those first few ingredients, it goes back on the shelf.
COVID and Nutrition Labels For Manufactures- Yes, the Rona is affecting public health and ergo public health policies. The information I discuss can be found in further detail a this FDA link. The aim is for manufactures to be able to make minor changes to their products if needed due to supply or demand issues during the pandemic. While there have been fear mongering reports, it is important to understand what this lead-way does not permit. It does not allow for substitutions for foods that may cause adverse health effects such as top allergens, gluten, sulfites and other known allergens. If a considerable amount of something (2% or greater) is added, it must be listed. Companies are still required to adhere to the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act. Additionally, major ingredients or characterizing ingredients cannot be removed or substituted. This means if you buy a chocolate chip cookie, it should be a chocolate chip cookie. It cannot have the chocolate chips removed and add/or substituted with something like raisins. Furthermore, claims cannot be nullified by making modifications. A marketed low-fat product must meet the specific guidelines of being low-fat product. Finally, the nutritional facts and function can not be significantly altered. Find more detail here regarding COVID-19 and packaged foods and nutrition labeling. It is important to know that it is still legally required to report foods that contain top allergens such as wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree-nuts, fish, soy, and shellfish.
COVID and Nutrition Labels for Restaurant’s. Temporary policy changes are in regards to the FD&C Act of 2014. The information that I am providing is pulled from the FDA Temporary Policy Regarding Nutrition Labeling for Restaurant’s and Food Establishments. The government implemented these changes in March because “this guidance is being implemented without prior public comment because FDA has determined that prior public participation for this guidance is not feasible or appropriate” Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Office of Nutrition and Food Labeling. It is important to note that this guidance is not mandatory and varied approaches are/can be taken.
Prior to the pandemic food establishments that had 20 or more locations were required to provide nutritional information regarding standard menu times. This included nutritional information such as total calorie content of a food, specific statements regarding nutrition statement availability and other specific details. Many restaurants are operating solely with their standard menu items and therefore can/do offer the required information from the FD&C Act. The aim of the temporary policy is to allow restaurants to be adaptable to the ever-changing uncertainties that this pandemic generates. Launching new menus and/or products can be more streamlined into distribution and implementation. It is important to know that it is still legally required to report foods that contain top allergens such as wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree-nuts, fish, soy, and shellfish.
The USDA has some helpful articles here if you would like to dive deeper into this subject. I really like this one that has a cut out that you can carry around with you. I like the infographic on this resource from the National Institute for Health.
I hope that you found this article to be a helpful tool. Please let me know how you liked it in the comments below. Have a great week and I look forward to seeing you again next week!
It is important to understand this article does not consider specific health conditions and is very generalized despite the fact it may look like it is being specific. If you wish to understand something more customized to you based off specific health conditions, sex, age, physical activity etc. I highly suggest meeting with a registered dietitian for your individual needs.