Use food labels as your ally for weight loss

If you want more success with weight loss, understanding food labels is a must. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to do so. Food labels aren’t complicated they just look that way.

The government makes food makers put labels on their products because consumers need to know what’s in the foods they eat. For weight loss management, understanding food labels will give you a big leg up in fighting fat.

Food labels follow the same format so they’re easy to learn how to read. They are divided into 6 sections:

• Serving Size
• Calories
• Nutrients you want to limit
• Nutrients you want more of
• Footnotes
• % Daily Value


Let’s check out these sections one at a time.
Serving Size

Here’s where the weight loss problem begins. Because people don’t read food labels, they usually eat too much. Those extra calories add up and make ‘em fat. Remember, calories do count. The label will state how many servings are in the box, can, package or whatever the food is in.

You might be bummed to find out just how little a serving size really is. Usually, it’s a lot less than you think. If you say double the serving size, everything else on the label doubles including the calories. It all begins with serving size-that’s why it’s 1st on the label. Start measuring how much you eat. I bet it’ll be a real eye opener.

Calories and Calories from Fat

This shows how many calories 1 serving contains. If you’re eating more than 1 serving, you’re eating more calories. In this example from a box of macaroni, 1 serving is 250 calories. There are a whopping 110 calories from fat which means that almost 50% of the calories come from fat! Not good.

Here’s a general guide to calories:

• 4o calories is low

• 100 calories is moderate

• 400 calories or more is high
Many of the foods we eat are high in calories and fat but really low in nutritional value. So with fat bellies and content grins on our faces, we waddle around all the while, malnourished! We're constantly involved in this tug of war with weight loss. It’s so amazing what we do to ourselves. This is why taking nutritional supplements is a must these days. They'll even help you with weight loss.

Nutrients You Want To Limit

Saturated fats, trans-fats, sodium and cholesterol are shown in yellow. These are the nutrients you want to limit. Too much of ‘em can lead to obesity, heart disease, cancer and high blood pressure.


Nutrients You Want More Of

The nutrients in blue are the ones you want more of. Most of us don’t get enough dietary fiber, vitamins A and C, calcium and iron. Big mistake. Fiber keeps our digestive systems working properly. Vitamins A and C are powerful anti-oxidants. Calcium helps prevent osteoporosis and iron keeps our blood healthy.

Above the blue section you’ll find carbohydrates and protein listed. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, gain weight or maintain your weight, monitoring how much carbohydrates and proteins you eat is very important.

Footnotes

The statement, “%DVs are based on a 2,000 calorie diet,” must be on all labels. Depending on the size of the package, the rest of the information in the footnote may or may not appear. If the rest of the info is included, the values never change because they are the same for all Americans.

For example if you are on a 2,000 calorie diet, you should limit your total fat to 65 grams per day. For fiber you should eat at least 25 grams daily. It doesn’t matter if you’re a man or a woman. These values are the same. As you can see the values for sodium and cholesterol don’t change even if you’re eating more calories. Other values may change depending on the amount of calories you eat.

% Daily Value (%DV)


These values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. They show the % of nutrients in each food serving. The important thing to know is whether the percentages are high or low. Here’s a quick tip:

• 5% or less is low
• 20% or more in high

How easy is that? That’s all you really need to know about %DV.

Of Note

You might notice on the food label that there are no % Daily Values for trans fat, protein and sugar. Trans fats should be avoided because they contribute to heart disease. No safe recommendations for eating them have been established.

According to the FDA, a %DV for protein has to be listed if the food makes a protein claim like, “high in protein.” If the food is meant to be eaten by infants and children under 4 years old, the %DV for protein has to be stated. No such listing for adults is required because the FDA believes that most adults eat enough protein. That’s questionable.

Since no safe standards have been established for sugar, it has no recommended %DV. Eating a lot of sugar is a real fast way to add a ton of calories with no added nutritional punch. You'll spend a lifetime in a battle with weight loss. If you don’t burn those calories, you’ll wear ‘em! Uggh………


So there you have it. Don’t let food labels freak you out. Take time to understand them. The knowledge gained when applied, will translate into better health. For weight loss, food labels can be a strong ally. They will allow you to take control of your diet and better manage your weight.

May you find plenty of physical energy for playing the game of life to its fullest.
-Isaac David Garuda


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