Designed to deceive? Confusion incarnate? Maybe, but food labels can provide you will a lot of information once you know how to read them.
There are a few things you should look for on a food label, the first is the Ingredients list. This gives you an idea of what is in the product. The first few ingredients listed in the ingredients list makes up the largest portion of the food. Be wary of products with the first ingredients listed as sugar or something different to what the product is saying it is.
Now we go to the actual table, this is known as the Typical Nutritional Information. This is where the quantities of nutrients found in that food are listed and often where people start to get confused. The nutritional information is usually listed in 2 columns; the first is the quantities of nutrients per 100g or per 100ml (liquid) as well as per serving size, this is usually stipulated by manufacturers. Some products might only have the nutritional value listed per 100 g (or 100 ml) and not per serving size. This is when it can get tricky; you will have to determine the nutritional value by calculating it according to the weight of the product.
The first nutrient listed is Energy and in South Africa it is usually listed in kilojoules (kJ). However in certain products, usually from overseas, energy is also listed in calories (cal) or even kilocalories (kcal), this can become quite confusing. The abbreviations ‘cal’ and ‘kCal’ actually have different scientific meanings but food manufacturers often use them interchangeably, therefore 70kCal or 70cal is the same and represents 70 calories. If you come across a product that is in calories, it can be converted to kJ using this easy calculation. 1 kJ is equal to 4.2kCal, therefore 500kJ converted to calories is (500 kJ / 4.2 = 119 calories) and to go from calories to kJ you multiply by 4.2, therefore (119 kCal / cal x 4.2 = 500 kJ). Now that we have an energy value what does it mean? Energy values for meals should be around 300kCal /1260 kJ – 500 kCal / 2100 kJ calories depending on your gender, exercise level and health goals.
CARBOHYDRATES
Carbohydrates are listed in the label as ‘Glycaemic carbohydrate’. This is the total carbohydrates that your body uses for energy and includes sugar. The total sugar value listed under glycaemic carbohydrate is added sugar (sucrose) as well as naturally occurring sugars in the form of lactose (milk sugar) and fructose (fruit sugar) etc. There are numerous names for sugar such as Sucrose, Agave nectar, Caramel, Coconut sugar, Molasses sugar, Honey and the list goes on. Sugars that occur naturally in foods such as fruits, vegetables, dairy and carbohydrates that are high in fibre are okay, it’s the sugars that are removed from their original source and added to foods that you need to be weary of. A small amount of added sugar (less than 10 % of Total Energy or about 6 teaspoons per day) can form part of a healthy balanced lifestyle especially in those who exercise. Sugar is often added to many of our foods such as pasta sauces, condiments, yoghurt, confectionary and drinks etc. therefore the total number of tsp can be reached very quickly. That’s not even counting the sugar added to your tea or coffee. An easy way to quantify the sugar content in a food product is to calculate the number of teaspoons, there is 5 g of sugar in 1 tsp. of sugar. To further classify the sugar content of your food (per 100g or 100ml), you can use the table below:
| Nutrient
(per 100g) |
Low
(Healthier option) |
Moderate
(Eat most of the time) |
High
(Eat occasionally) |
| Sugar | 5 g or less | 5.1 – 15g | More than 15 g |
FAT
The fat content is broken down into total fat, saturated fat, unsaturated fat (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat) and trans fat. Choose food with labels that show a higher unsaturated fat content rather than saturated or trans fats content. Look out for the words ‘hydrogenated vegetable oil’ in the ingredients list; this is another phrase for trans fat. The total fat and saturated fat content of your food product (per 100g) can be rated according to the table below
| Nutrient
(per 100g) |
Low
(Healthier option) |
Moderate
(Most of the time) |
High
(Eat occasionally) |
| Total Fat | 3 g or less | 3.1 – 20 g | More than 20 g |
| Saturated fat | 1.5 g or less | 1.6 – 5 g | More than 5g |
It is important to remember that all fats are still high in energy so they should be eaten sparingly.
SODIUM
Sodium, this is listed on the food label as total sodium. Look on the ingredient list for the words salt or any ingredient that contains the word “sodium” e.g. MSG, baking soda or baking powder. Other words that describe salty foods are “salted”, “smoked” or “cured”.
| Nutrient
(per 100g) |
Low
(Eat more often) |
Moderate
(Eat sometimes ) |
High
(Avoid or Limit) |
| Sodium | 120mg or less
(300 g Table Salt) |
120 – 600 mg | More than 600mg
(1.5 g Table salt) |
THE BOTTOM LINE: Now that you have learnt how to read a food label, go to your nearest grocery store or pull out some products in your cupboard and give your new skill some practice.
This content was provided by FUTURELIFE®
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