Consumers are more health conscious than ever, so some food makers use tricky tricks to fool people into buying unhealthy products. If you're always looking for accuracy and want to count every calorie you eat, you have to know how to read nutrition info on every packaged or processed product. Restaurants sometimes care about this too and put nutrition info for each dish with details and percentages of each nutrient so you can choose right.
Here you'll find everything important about how to read food labels so you can tell healthy fast food from unhealthy ones.
One of the best tips is to ignore the names usually stuck on the front of packages.
Actually, research shows that adding health claims to front labels makes people think the product is healthier than the same product without those claims. This often impacts consumer choices. Manufacturers are often not honest in how they use these labels. They tend to use health claims that are misleading and sometimes completely wrong.
- Examples include many sugary breakfast cereals like full cocoa cereals. Despite what the label might say, these products aren’t healthy.
- Summary: Front labels are often used to attract people to buy products. However, some of these labels are very misleading.
Ingredients list
Ingredients are listed by amount - highest to lowest. This means the first ingredient is the most used by the manufacturer. If the first ingredients include refined grains, some kind of sugar, or hydrogenated oils, you can assume the product is unhealthy. Instead, try to pick products that list whole foods as the first three ingredients.
- Summary Ingredients are listed by amount - from highest to lowest. Look for products that list whole foods as the first three ingredients, and be skeptical of foods with long ingredient lists.
Watch out for amounts
Nutrition labels show calories and nutrients for a set amount of the product - usually one serving. But these serving sizes are often way smaller than what people actually eat in one go. For example, one serving might be half a soda can, a quarter of a cake, half a chocolate bar, or one cookie. This tricks people into thinking the food has fewer calories and less sugar.
- Summary The amount listed on the package can be misleading and unrealistic. Manufacturers often list much less than most people eat at once.
The most common misleading claims or lies companies use
Health claims on packaged foods are usually made to grab your attention and convince you the product is healthy. Here are some of the most common claims and what they really mean:
Light: Products labeled as light are treated to reduce calories from fat or overall calories. You should check carefully to see if anything else was added instead, like sugar.
Whole grains: This sounds very healthy but it really means the product has more than one type of refined grain and that is usually not healthy.
Natural: This doesn’t mean the product really looks natural. It simply means the maker added a natural source like apple or rice.
Organic term: This phrase says little about the real meaning of organic. For example organic sugar is still sugar.
No added sugar:Some products naturally have a high sugar content so not adding sugar doesn’t mean they're healthy. They might have unhealthy sugar substitutes added instead.
Low calorie: Low calorie products should have at least one third fewer calories than the regular versions to get the label. Still, a low calorie product from one brand might have similar calories to a non-low calorie product from another brand.
Low fat: This label usually means fat was cut but more sugar was added, so be very careful and check the ingredient list.
Low carb: Lately, low carb diets got linked to better health but processed low carb labeled foods are still usually processed foods similar to low fat processed foods.
Made from whole grains: The product may have a little whole grain. Check the ingredient list. If whole grains are not in the first three ingredients, the amount is insignificant.
Rich in: This means some nutrients were added to the product, like vitamin D in milk, but that doesn't make it healthy.
Gluten free:Gluten free doesn't mean healthy. The product just doesn't have wheat, rye, or barley. Most gluten free foods are highly processed and full of fat and sugar.
Fruit flavored: Many processed foods have names that hint at natural flavor, like strawberry yogurt, but they may not have any fruit, just chemicals made to taste like fruit.
Zero trans fats: This phrase means "Less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving." So if serving sizes are misleadingly small, the product might still have trans fat.
- Summary: Don't trust labels that give nutritional info or health marketing terms because they often trick consumers into thinking processed unhealthy food is good for you.
Here are examples of what’s listed on labels (ingredients list).
| calories | calories |
| total fat | total fat |
| saturated fat | saturated fat |
| unsaturated fat | trans fat |
| cholesterol | cholesterol |
| sodium salt | sodium salt |
| carbohydrates | total carbohydrate |
| dietary fiber | dietary fiber |
| sugars | sugars |
| protein | protein |
| vitamins and minerals | vitamins and minerals |
How to use the info on every label.
- The first thing to look for is the product size, meaning how much food you’ll eat. Different packaging means different sizes. The size tells you how much you should eat. Don’t eat more than the allowed daily calories or you’ll gain weight.
- The label also shows the % daily value you should eat. Most systems use 2000 calories per day. You should know your allowed % each day. You also need to consider other factors like gender, age, and activity level.
- Your diet should include the five main nutrients and avoid eating too much saturated fat. Your daily portion should not exceed 5% or less.
You should keep these things in mind
Good nutrients you should eat more of :-
Fiber : Helps your body digest the food you eat and can also help reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease. A man 50 or younger should get at least 38 grams of fiber daily, and women 50 or younger should get at least 25 grams daily.
- Fiber is found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Look for the phrase 'whole grains' on ingredient lists.
Bad nutrients you should avoid :-
- Saturated fats : This type of fat can increase the risk of heart disease and high cholesterol. An average adult should consume less than 20 grams of saturated fat daily.
- This type of fat also raises heart disease risk. If you want perfect health, you should avoid it completely. There's a trick some companies use , they list Zero percent trans fat on labels but actually have half a percent. This means your food could have trans fats even if the label says zero.
- Check the ingredient list for trans fats, which includes any hydrogenated vegetable oils. Trans fats often show up in baked goods, fried foods, and margarine.
Cholesterol : You should eat less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol a day. If you have heart disease, try to keep it under 200 milligrams a day.
