A common question wellness seekers ask is about how to read a food label. In this podcast episode Dr Karen Wolfe breaks down the important features to pay attention to in a label before you choose to buy it. She also gives examples of foods and their labels.
How To Read A Food Label– 10 Tips
- Never believe the claims on the front of the box.
- Always read the Nutrition Facts label and the ingredient list.
- Check the serving size.
- Check the amount of servings per package.
- Check the calories per serving.
- Check total carbohydrates
- Check fiber (part of total carbohydrates)
- Check Added Sugars and Sugar Alcohols
- Check for trans fats
- Check ingredient list
What are Added Sugars and How are they Different from Total Sugars?
Total Sugars includes sugars naturally present in many nutritious foods and beverages, such as sugar in milk and fruit as well as any added sugars that may be present in the product.
Added sugars include sugars that are
- added during the processing of foods (such as sucrose or dextrose),
- foods packaged as sweeteners (such as table sugar),
- sugars from syrups and honey.
- sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices.
Note: Having the word “includes” before Added Sugars on the label indicates that Added Sugars are included in the number of grams of Total Sugars in the product.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends limiting calories from added sugars to less than 10 percent of total calories per day. For example, if you consume a 2,000 calorie daily diet, that would be 200 calories or 50 grams of added sugars per day.
Tool Kit for Nutrition label Resources
The FDA’s has a New Nutrition Facts Label Campaign using the newsletter text, social media posts, images, videos, and education resources. CLICK HERE for those resources.
