Fat is an important nutrient that provides energy. Since fat has the highest amount of calories and energy, what isn't used by the body is stored in adipose tissue. The accumulation of fat in tissue leads to obesity. When reading food labels, you can calculate how many fat calories are in meal portions. This calculation helps you avoid too much fat in the diet. Too much fat can lead to heart disease and elevated cholesterol levels.
Step 1
Read the large label on the food package entitled "Nutrition Facts." This label includes a list of fats, carbohydrates, proteins and vitamins in recipes. The "Total Fat" section on the label is directly underneath the calorie content.
Step 2
Multiply the total fat in grams by the number of servings. The food label gives the amount of fat in each serving. For instance, a can of soup is usually two servings, even though most people eat the whole can. If you eat the entire can of soup, the total fat given needs to be multiplied by 2.
Step 3
Add the total amount of fat grams in the meal. Once the total fat for each ingredient is calculated, add the total. This total is the amount of fat you've consumed in the meal. Don't forget to include other fats added to food. For instance, adding a pat of butter also adds fat into the diet. Butter has a Nutrition Facts label on it as well, so include the fat listed for butter as a part of the total amount of calories.
Step 4
Calculate the number of fat calories in the meal. One gram of fat is equal to nine calories. To calculate the total calories from fat, multiply nine times the total grams from Step 3.
Step 5
Use the calculator in the Resources link to calculate how many calories you burn in a day. Compare it to how many calories you consume in a day. To lower body weight, it's estimated that a reduction of 3,500 calories a week in the diet will burn 1 lb. of fat, which means you lose 1 lb. a week by cutting approximately 500 calories a day from your diet.
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