The Food and Drug Administration is the branch of the federal government responsible for protecting consumers against harm by monitoring the safety and effectiveness of drugs, medical devices, vaccines, pet products, cosmetics, dietary supplements and the food supply. The FDA also is responsible for the "Nutrition Facts" and "Supplement Facts" labels that you see on the back of packages that you purchase at the supermarket. Understand these labels and the serving sizes that the FDA has set for each food to monitor your intake of calories and nutrients and make healthier food choices.
Observing the Nutrition Facts label
When you look at any "Nutrition Facts" label, standard information appears, per the FDA regulations for food and supplement manufacturers. At the top, the label lists the serving size and how many servings are in a container, followed by the total number of calories in one serving size. The grams of fat, carbohydrate and protein appear next, along with milligrams of cholesterol, sodium and potassium. To the right of these values is the percent daily value of these nutrients that you are receiving per serving, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Finally, you see the percent daily values of other vitamins and minerals, per serving, that are incorporated into the food.
How to Use the Label to Eat Healthier
Reviewing the "Nutrition Facts" and "Supplement Facts" panels can assist you in your quest to eat healthier in several ways. They allow you to count your calories much easier and keep track of how much fat you are consuming, along with the type of fat. Choosing foods with no trans fat and very low saturated fat and cholesterol can help you achieve a healthier diet. When you observe how many grams of carbohydrates a food contains, make sure that the amount of grams coming from sugars is low and amount coming from dietary fiber is high. You also can tell how nutrient-dense a food is by the vitamins and percent daily values that are listed. Look for foods that have lots of nutrients and high percentages.
Use the Footnotes as a Guide
At the bottom of all "Nutrition Facts" labels is a footnote that shows the total amounts of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrate and dietary fiber for a 2,000- and 2,500-calorie diet. For total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, you should be consuming less than the listed amounts to attain a healthy diet. Carbohydrate and dietary fiber both are listed as the amounts that you should try to reach daily. High complex carbohydrate foods with high fiber content tend to be good foods to manage weight and achieve health.
Things to Remember
Although the "Nutrition Facts" label is pretty straightforward once you understand how to read it, there are still a few things to keep in mind. When looking at a "Nutrition Facts" label, be sure to observe the serving size. In some of your favorite high-calorie foods, the serving size might be much smaller than you think. Another thing to think about is the percentage of calories that come from fat. If there are 200 calories in one serving size, and 100 calories come from fat, 50 percent of the food is pure fat. If your goal is to eat healthy and lose weight, you may want to make a different food choice.
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