Food Nutrition Facts

The FDA has made it a requirement for the food nutrition facts to be clearly labeled on all packaging. The majority of the people pay little attention to this unless they have a food allergy. Who has time to go grocery shopping and read every label in their shopping cart? Understanding the food labels is essential to a healthy diet and critical to those who are experiencing weight problems.

The labels describe the food nutrition facts and other important information about the foods that your children eat. From calories, fiber, and fat grams, to the total of all other food ingredients. Knowing how to read the food labels will help you to provide the healthy nutrients that your family should eat such as: calcium and fiber, and at the same time know about the unhealthy ingredients, like fat, saturated fat, sodium,and cholesterol.

Serving Size: The serving size and number of servings per container or package is critical. Many times people overlook this data. Quite often containers or packages contain more than one serving. If you were to eat a small container yourself when it is labeled as 2 servings you are consuming twice the portions. This is a common way that people overeat. A solution would be to purchase single sized portions or portions just big enough to feed your family. A rule of thumb: 40 calories per serving is considered low in calories, 100 calories per serving is considered moderate in calories, 400 calories and up per serving is considered high in calories.