Understanding Food Labels and Health Claims

The food label is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and contains information about the recommended dietary intake of nutrients. The recommended intake levels are called daily values or DV. The food label is your friend when it comes to nutrition and portion control.

Food Label Terms A–Z

Terms and claims used on food labels are regulated by the FDA. Definitions and rules regarding use of the terms are listed below in alphabetical order.

Calories

This is the number of calories in one serving. Again, look to make sure how many servings the container holds and what the serving size is. The terms "no calories," "zero calories," and "calorie free," describe foods that provide 5 calories or less per serving.

The phrases "low calorie" and "few calories" describe foods that contain no more than 40 calories in one 2-tablespoon serving or 120 calories in a 100-gram serving. The terms "reduced calories" and "fewer calories" describe foods that contain 25% fewer calories than the typical referenced food per 100-gram serving.

Calories from Fat

This is the total calories from fat in one serving of this food.

Dietary Fiber

Most people do not get enough fiber in their diet. Fiber promotes good bowel function. Aim to exceed the daily value for fiber, 25 to 30 total grams per day.

Percent Daily Values

This number is calculated for each nutrient and based on a daily intake of 2,000 calories for general nutrition advice. For fat, cholesterol, and sodium the daily intake is a "less than" value as you are encouraged to stay under the daily value. For other nutrients, it is an "at least" value.

If the label has less than 5% of the daily value of a nutrient, it is considered low in that nutrient. If it has 10%—19% of a nutrient it is considered to be a "good source" of that nutrient. If it has 20% or more in a single serving then it is considered an "excellent source" of that nutrient.

Protein

A daily value for protein isn't listed unless the label makes a claim that it is high in protein.

Saturated Fat

The weight of saturated fat in one serving of this food. Try to stay below the daily value; lower is better. Shoot for lower than 20 grams of saturated fat per day.

Servings per Container

You might assume that bag of potato chips is 1 serving and the 140 calories it lists applies to the whole bag. Think again and check: Cans and bags you may believe are single servings could be 2, 2 1/2, 3 or more servings. All the numbers listed below for calories, fat, carbohydrates, etc. are based on one serving, not on the entire container.

Serving Size

This is the amount per serving. It may or may not apply to the whole container; you will find that out in the next number. You may be shocked at how small a "serving" is, as restaurant portions are often two or more servings.

Sodium

As with cholesterol, sodium is a needed part of the diet but we tend to get too much in our diet. Aim to stay below the daily value of 2,300 mg per day.

Sugars

Sugars include naturally occurring simple carbohydrates such as lactose in milk, as well as added sugars.

Total Carbohydrates

We now enter the section of the label where we aim to meet or exceed the daily value of these nutrients. Total carbs include complex and simple carbs in one serving of food. These can be sugars, starches, or fiber.

Total Fat

The number of grams of fat in one serving of this food. Health experts recommend limiting the intake of saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, and sodium, which is why these are listed in this area. You want to aim at staying below the daily value percentage listed.

Trans Fat

No daily value is given because it is recommended that you eliminate trans fat completely from your diet. If the amount of trans fat is listed as "0 grams" there may be a chance there are still trace amounts in the food. To be sure, you can look at the ingredient list and search for the terms "hydrogenated" or "partially hydrogenated."

Vitamins and Minerals

Most people do not get enough calcium, potassium, dietary fiber, or vitamin D in their diet.

How to Read an Ingredient List

Once you get to the top of the food label and into the ingredients, how do you spot fats and sugars you would rather avoid? You'll find them in the ingredient list found below the nutrition facts label.

If you have a food allergy, it is essential to read the label. Bring your reading glasses or a magnifying glass: The print gets tiny on those labels.

Here is where food manufacturers can play some word games with us to hide sugars and fats by using creative or confusing names. Is dehydrated cane juice much different from cane sugar? Other ingredients sound like a chemistry lab shopping list. These can be scary or just plain confusing.

Food Health Claims A–Z

U.S. government regulations spell out what terms may be used to describe the level of nutrients in a food. You'll see many of these terms used on the front of the package. They are listed here in alphabetical order.

Free

This means no or insignificant amounts (less than half a gram) of these components: fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, sugars, and calories. This may also be listed as "without," "no" and "zero." If a food says "fat-free," "non-fat," or "zero fat," then it has less than half a gram of fat.

Good Source

One serving of this food contains 10 to 19 percent of the daily value for that nutrient.

Healthy

To call itself "healthy," a food must be low in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium. If it is a single-item food, it must provide at least 10 percent or more of the daily value of vitamins A or C, iron, calcium, protein, or fiber. Some foods are naturally healthy unless they are modified: fruits, vegetables, and some grains.

For frozen entrees and multi-course frozen dinners, they must also provide 10% of two or three of the listed vitamins, minerals, protein or fiber in addition to being low in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

The sodium content must be below 360 mg per serving for individual foods and 480 mg per serving for meal-type products.

High

If the food has 20 percent or more of the daily value per serving for a nutrient, it is high in that nutrient.

Lean and Extra Lean

These terms describe meat, fish, seafood, and poultry. For those who eat meat, aim to keep your consumption in the lean and extra lean categories.

• Lean: less than 10 g fat, 4.5 g or less saturated fat, and less than 95 mg cholesterol per serving and per 100 g.
• Extra lean: less than 5 g fat, less than 2 g saturated fat, and less than 95 mg cholesterol per serving and per 100 g.

Less or Fewer

This term compares the food to a reference food and claims 25 percent less of a nutrient or calories than the reference food. A common example are potato chips that claim 25 percent less fat or 25 percent fewer calories than other potato chips.

Light

A food can call itself light if it has 1/3 fewer calories or half the fat of the reference food. Example: light sour cream would have less fat and/or calories than regular sour cream. It can claim to be light in sodium if the sodium content is reduced by at least 50 percent.

Low

A food can add "low" in front of a nutrient if it doesn't exceed a certain level per serving of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and calories. You can eat these foods as part of a balanced diet and will probably not exceed the daily values. Example: low-fat cheese.

More

This means the food has a nutrient that is at least 10 percent of the daily value more than the reference food.

Reduced

For foods not naturally low in a certain nutrient, it can be called reduced if it has been altered to have 25 percent less of that nutrient. For example, reduced-fat milk or reduced-fat cheese, as the natural milk or cheese are at least 25 percent higher in fat.