Are you interested in achieving a more nutritious diet? You can use the nutrition information collected by government public health boards to choose healthy foods that will help you safely control your weight. Varied sources for packaged and prepared foods--and of raw fruits, meats, fish and vegetables--may require you to add up the nutrition information yourself. The effort is worth it, to make sure you get the vitamins and minerals you need in a well-rounded diet.
Dietary Needs
Learn which nutrients you need by reading the nutrition information on food labels that are required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These facts tell you how much of each significant nutrient a packaged food provides. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) sets overall standards for a healthy diet in its Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This report gives the daily values (DVs), or amounts of vitamins and minerals needed for healthy body function.
Packaged Foods
Knowing what your target goal is for the day lets you put the nutrition information on packaged food labels into dietary perspective. For instance, if you know you should get 1,000 mg of calcium per day, the nonfat milk carton label tells you that you'll get 30 percent of that---30 percent DV---in a 1-cup serving. Packaged foods are required to list nutrition facts regarding their content of fat, cholesterol, vitamins and minerals.
'Conventional' Foods
The government terms unpackaged, or raw food items as "conventional" foods and doesn't require that providers include food labels regarding nutrition content. You can find out for yourself how much vitamin C, magnesium, and other vitamins and minerals are in foods such as broccoli, apples, rainbow trout and pork chops. Dietary Guidelines for Americans offer an abbreviated list, and the USDA Nutrient Database provides more extensive online information detailing the nutrients in conventional and prepared foods.
Fast Foods
Consumers who regularly read the nutrition facts on packages now question what is in the fast food products they eat. Some fast food restaurants, such as Subway and McDonald's, voluntarily provide this information in their stores or online. They are only required to publicize content details if they make a nutritional claim, such as promoting a low-fat menu item. The USDA Nutrient Database gives calorie and nutrient counts for some popular fast food items, including double cheeseburgers, french fries and milkshakes.
Nutrient Information
FDA food labels are laid out to help you prioritize foods in your diet. The nutrients listed in the main portion of the chart are those you should minimize, such as fat and cholesterol. Those in the second section, such as Vitamin A and iron, are elements you should emphasize. This is in line with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which note the strengths and weaknesses in the nutritional composition of the average diet.
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