by Mary Seal

Created on: October 14, 2008   Last Updated: February 07, 2012

The FDA has required standard food or nutritional labels, called "Nutrition Facts" on all foods sold in containers cans, bags, cartons, etc. Nutrition labels contain 5 sections: serving size, calorie information, nutrients, disclaimer and ingredients. But what do they mean?

Serving Size

The first section contains the serving size and the amount of servings in the container. It gives the serving size in American standard measurements and in grams. This section is important because all the calorie and nutrient information that follows is based on the serving size listed. The amount of servings in the container is also listed e.g. a can has 1 cup per serving, but the product contains 2 cups. If both cups are eaten the calories and nutrients will have to be doubled to obtain the accurate amount that will be consumed. The serving size also provides an excellent way to compare brands of the same product.

Calorie Information

The next section is the calories and calories from fat. The calories listed are per serving. The calories should be around the moderate 100 area, but it should at least fall between the 40 (low) and 400 (high) range. Since fat is something to avoid, notice the fat in the calories. If the label says there are 100 calories and 30 calories come from fat, 30 of the 100 calories are from fat.

Daily Value

Before we discuss the next section, the % Daily Value must be explained. The daily value is based on a 2000 calorie diet and gives the percentage of the nutrients based on that measurement. For example, the package lists 30% Vitamin A. This means that a serving possesses 30% of the required daily allowance of Vitamin A in a 2000 calorie diet. If the diet is more or less than 2000 calories per day, the percentage would change accordingly.

Nutrients

The nutrients are divided into those that should be limited and nutrients needed for a healthy diet.

Limit these Nutrients

The following nutrients should be consumed in a very small amount. They lead to cancer, high cholesterol and heart disease. When comparing, all things being equal choose the one with the least of these:

Total Fat: Too much fat in one's diet can cause cancer and heart disease. Look to keep the total of fat to calories at no more than 30%.

Saturated Fat: limit to 7% of total calories this plays a part in high cholesterol and heart disease.

Trans Fat: limit to 1% of total calories. This fat does not have a percentage for daily intake because the FDA doesn't have sufficient information to

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