How to Read Nutrition Labels
Last week, we talked about the history of the U.S. Nutrition Facts Label. With its origin out of the way, let’s dive into the components of the nutrition label and what they mean for us as consumers!
Serving Size
Contrary to most people's belief, a food’s serving size is not a recommendation of how much to eat or drink, but a guideline based on how much of that food people report eating on average. It’s not that you “should” have one cup of yogurt, but based on prior data, that’s generally the amount most people have.
Serving sizes are standardized to make comparisons between similar foods easier. They provide a reference amount so more specific information on micronutrients and macronutrients can be shown. Again, it’s not necessarily recommended that you eat what’s considered a serving, but you can use the provided data to determine the nutrition of how much you eat.
Calories
Calories represent how much energy we get from our food. The calories on a nutrition label will reflect the energy content in a specified serving. If you eat more or less than what’s recommended, you can use the serving information provided to calculate how many calories you’ve actually consumed.
As we’ll discuss below, 2,000 calories a day is used as a general guide for nutrition labels and nutrition advice.
Every body is different, so 2,000 calories might not actually reflect the amount your body needs. It may be too much or too little. Myplate.gov offers a caloric need estimate if you’re interested in finding out a rough estimation of your caloric need.
An Unintended Short Rant About Calorie Calculators
I don’t want to disregard the help that calorie calculators can provide for those who want to address their dietary habits and make changes, but I’m not a huge fan of the generalized results provided.
On myplate.gov, I was offered two daily caloric recommendations: one to maintain my current weight, and one to reach a “healthy” weight. With no information other than my age, sex, weight, height, and a very general physical activity level, it was determined that I’m not at a “healthy” weight.
If you have the means to meet with a registered dietitian (particularly one who is body neutral or believes in HAES,) they’ll be able to provide more specific information based on you, your goals, and your lifestyle.
ANYWAYS, back to the matter at hand!
Percent Daily Value
The Percent Daily Value (%DV) on a nutrition label is another reference amount based on the specified serving size. These percentages represent the percentage of each listed nutrient that this food contributes to your total daily diet.
For example, a food with total fat listed at 12% contributes 12% of the total amount of fat it’s recommended to have each day (out of 100%).
This value is included to help consumers make decisions about the foods they wish to consume, balancing foods that have a higher %DV of a certain nutrient with others that have a lower %DV.
These values are again based on a 2,000 calorie diet and the recommended amount of each nutrient at that caloric level. Once again, this value is generalized and might not be right for you. An athlete’s diet will likely require more carbohydrates than dictated by recommendations, meaning their % of carbs eaten in a single day will be over 100% based on listed amounts.
Nutrient Consumption Goals
Some nutrients have specific recommendations to ideally eat less than, or at least, that amount. This information is not available on a nutrition label.
Goal to eat less than daily value:
Saturated fat
Sodium
Added sugars
Goal to eat at least the daily value:
Dietary fiber
Vitamin D
Calcium
Iron
Potassium
% DV Not Listed
Not every listed nutrient has a %DV recommendation. For example, both trans fats and total sugar are missing %DV because no reference value has been established. Much of this is related to a lack of available information that would be sufficient for recommendation making.
Protein is also missing a %DV on most foods. This value is only required on products intended for children under 4 years old or if the product makes a claim regarding protein, such as “high in protein.” Based on current evidence, protein intake is not a concern for those over the age of 4 years old in the U.S.
Total Fat
We’ve talked about dietary fat in previous newsletters. It’s one of the three macronutrients required by the human body, and aids in metabolizing fat-soluble vitamins and providing energy.
From bodies to foods, almost every form of fat is unjustly villainized in our society. Fat is an essential nutrient and many sources of fat have additional vitamins and minerals.
Saturated Fat
Saturated fat is found in meat and some dairy products. Saturated fat is one of the nutrients on the nutrition label with a recommendation that reflects the maximum amount a person should consume daily. Saturated fat has been linked to increasing the risk of heart disease.
Trans Fat
Trans fats are made when liquid oils are turned into solids through hydrogenation. Trans fats have no daily reference value due to a lack of sufficient available information.
They also increase the risk of heart disease.
Cholesterol
Cholesterol can be a little confusing.
It’s not an essential nutrient as our liver produces it on its own. It helps make hormones and build cells.
Cholesterol is a waxy type of fat, and too much can clog arteries and put people at risk for heart disease and stroke.
Foods high in cholesterol are often also high in saturated and/or trans fats, which also contribute to higher risks of heart disease.
Sodium
Sodium is an essential nutrient, but too much can also pose a problem. Sodium’s recommended daily allowance is also a max recommendation. On average, Americans consume almost 1.5 times the daily recommended amount of sodium. High levels of sodium can lead to high blood pressure and affect heart health.
Total Carbohydrates
We’ve also talked about carbohydrates before (twice!) Carbohydrates provide us with energy and are the primary fuel source of the body.
There are three types of carbohydrates: sugars, starches, and fibers. The total carbohydrates category on a food label include all three types of carb. Sugar and fiber also have their own categories on nutrition labels.
Dietary Fiber
Dietary fiber is the part of plant-derived food that can’t be fully digested by the human body.
Dietary fiber adds bulk, which can help increase the feeling of fullness after eating. It also aids in digestion.
This nutrient’s daily value is a recommendation of the minimum amount of fiber to eat.
Most people don’t consume enough dietary fiber, so being able to identify foods that are higher in fiber is a helpful way for consumers to be conscious of their fiber intake!
Total Sugar
Total sugars include both naturally occurring and added sugars. Milk and fruit are two examples of foods that naturally contain sugar. As mentioned above, there's no recommended daily value on the labels because no recommendation exists.
Added Sugars
Added sugars is one of the most recent additions to the food nutrition labels, making its debut in 2020. Added sugars are exactly what they sound like– sugars added to foods during processes. A few examples include:
Agave nectar
Sugar
Fructose
Rice syrup
Some added sugars are also naturally occurring in foods.
Protein
Another macro we’ve already talked about! If you’re new here or just want a little refresher, check out my previous blog post on protein.
Proteins are essentially the building blocks of life. They repair and create new cells, balance nutrients, provide energy, and more.
As mentioned above, there’s no recommended protein intake as adequate intake is not considered a concern among Americans. However, a %DV is required if a claim is made for protein, or if the food is intended for children under the age of 4.
Vitamins/Minerals
Vitamin D, calcium, iron, and potassium are the current vitamins and minerals required to be listed on nutrition fact labels. Vitamins and minerals help the immune system, support growth and development, and help cells and organs function.
Vitamin D and potassium are more recent additions, as Americans don’t always get the recommended amount.
Vitamin A and C are no longer required as deficiencies in these vitamins are uncommon.
Applying This Information
Better understanding U.S. Nutrition Facts Labels can help people make more informed decisions about what they’re putting in their bodies and how it might help or hinder their health goals.
Again, the information provided is pretty general and might not actually reflect your body’s specific needs. A registered dietician is the best person to provide you with these details.
If you’re not interested in knowing the specifics, but still want to use nutrition labels, it’s good to look at it from a perspective of the nutrition consumption goals. Things like dietary fiber and calcium have minimums, so choosing foods with higher levels of these nutrients is good! Things like sodium and saturated fats have maximums, so eating a variety of foods that have mostly lower levels of sodium and saturated fats is a good choice too!
As a final reminder, since this stuck with me the most: serving sizes have nothing to do with how much you should eat! They can provide a good guideline, and the nutritional information is still important to consider, but it’s okay if you eat differently than the listed serving sizes!
Photo credit: FDA’s Nutrition Facts Label (for educational purposes)
https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/nutrition-facts-label-images-download