It really is easy to choose the right food at the grocery store when you shop. Pick up the item and check the back, side or bottom to find the "Nutrition Facts."
Check the serving size and notice how many servings the item contains. Read the calories, and then the nutrients (Fat, Cholesterol, Sodium, Carbohydrate content, Sugars and Protein). Many people skip the vitamin values, but don't do it. You want to know these numbers.
Food Labels
Go shopping armed with what nutrition labels mean. Don't let those numbers be a mystery. Make them a map to your good health. Become a smart shopper. You may even save money once you avoid "bad" food choices.
It really is easy to choose the right food at the grocery store when you shop. Pick up the item and check the back, side or bottom to find the "Nutrition Facts."
Check the serving size and notice how many servings the item contains.
Read the calories, and then the nutrients (Fat, Cholesterol, Sodium, Carbohydrate content, Sugars and Protein).
Many people skip the vitamin values, but don't do it. You want to know these numbers. Overall, check the Daily Value (DV) Percentages to be sure the item you are reviewing is right for you.
Check the serving size and notice how many servings the item contains.
Read the calories, and then the nutrients (Fat, Cholesterol, Sodium, Carbohydrate content, Sugars and Protein).
Many people skip the vitamin values, but don't do it. You want to know these numbers. Overall, check the Daily Value (DV) Percentages to be sure the item you are reviewing is right for you.
Serving Size: Look at the serving size. You see how much of this food is equivalent to one serving and how many servings are in the entire item.
The serving size influences all of the nutritional information that follows - so if you eat more than one serving, you have to recalculate these numbers accordingly. Try not to be tempted to cheat. It's your body and that means it is up to you to decide if the item should go into your shopping cart or back on the grocer's shelf.
The serving size influences all of the nutritional information that follows - so if you eat more than one serving, you have to recalculate these numbers accordingly. Try not to be tempted to cheat. It's your body and that means it is up to you to decide if the item should go into your shopping cart or back on the grocer's shelf.
Calories: Managing your daily caloric intake is an important part of your healthy eating plan, even if you are not on a diet and not counting calories.
For example: in the sample label, one serving = one cup, which contains 250 calories. If you have two cups (double the serving size), you end up eating double the calories. In this example, that's 500. It works the other way, too: eat half a serving (1/2 cup), and you get half the calories (125). Be informed. Know what food you put into your body.
Nutrients: Nutrients take up most of a nutrition label, because they have a key impact on your health.
Nutrients to Limit: If you eat too much fat, saturated fat, saturated fat or trans fat, cholesterol, and sodium, it may lead to a higher risk of chronic diseases, like high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer. It's important to limit your intake of them.
Total Carbohydrate: The FDA lists the recommended Daily Value as 300g (based on a 2,000-calorie diet). This amount may be lower based on your total calorie intake and the percent of fat and protein in your daily diet.
Nutrients to Highlight: Dietary fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium, and Iron help reduce the risk of some diseases and conditions. You want to put enough of these into your dietary routine as possible. Incorporate the recommended amounts.
Percent Daily Value (%DV)
Look to the right of most of the nutrients listed on a label, and notice the Percent Daily Value (%DV). The %DV is a guide to a food's nutrient content based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Though you may require a lower number of daily calories based on your personal plan, you can use the %DV as a quick way to tell if a food is high or low in a certain nutrient by applying these simple rules:
Overall, check the Daily Value (DV) Percentages to be sure the item you are reviewing is right for you. If the %DV is higher than 20%, the food is considered to have a "high" amount of that nutrient; if the %DV is 5% or less, the nutrient content is "low."
Overall, check the Daily Value (DV) Percentages to be sure the item you are reviewing is right for you. If the %DV is higher than 20%, the food is considered to have a "high" amount of that nutrient; if the %DV is 5% or less, the nutrient content is "low."
Use this information to track your progress toward your daily recommended allowance of certain nutrients or for comparing two similar products (as long as the serving sizes are similar). The explanation below also provides some clarity on Daily Value and %DV (based on a 2,000-calorie per day diet). In the example, here's how to understand DV and what the goal is.
It might be helpful to know that g means gram and the m in mg means "thousand." There are 1000 milligrams in 1 gram (1g is 1000 times bigger or more than 1mg).
Nutrient: Total FatDV: 12g%DV: 16%Goal: Less than 65g per day
Nutrient: CholesterolDV: 30mg%DV: 10%Goal: Less than 300g per dayNutrient: SodiumDV: 470g%DV: 20TGoal: Less than 2400g per dayNutrient: CarbohydrateDV: 13g%DV: 10%Goal: Less than 300g per dayNutrient: Dietary FiberDV: 0%DV: 0%Goal: Less than 25g per day
Footnote on Label: The asterisked item in the footnote emphasizes the point that the label information is based on a 2000 calorie diet, and the chart provides Daily Values of certain nutrients for a 2,000 and 2,500calorie diet. The footnoted section is the same across all food labels.
Once and Done: Most people buy the same items over and over again. What this means to you is that once you check the label and determine that the nutritional value fits your plan, it's done. Next time you shop, you can safely load your cart with the items that you previously checked the label for nutritional information. After a few shopping trips, your label checking days are down to none or just the few new items you decide to get.
That's it for today, blog.
That's it for today, blog.