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?

1

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