Reading food labels can make you healthier

In a supermarket we often choose food by its appearance and we usually don’t think whether it is healthy or not. Actually it is not difficult to choose healthy food. The only thing you should know is how to read food labels.

Photo: Reading food labels can make you healthier

In the past, it was difficult to keep track of all we needed to know about nutrition. Food labels didn't always help: Is "lite" really light? What's considered "high fibre"? In the past, manufacturers were liberal in how they labelled their products - many times stretching their claims. Below are some common label descriptions and their requirements.

Terms and Definitions

- Light: One-third fewer calories than in the regular product

- Fresh: Raw; never frozen, processed, or preserved

- Calorie free: less than 5 calories per serving

- Sugar free: less than 0.5 g of sugar per serving

- Sodium free: less than 5 mg of sodium per serving

- Fat free: less than 0.5 g of fat per serving

- Cholesterol free: less than 2 mg of cholesterol per serving

- Saturated fat free: less than 2 g of saturated fat per serving

- High: Provides more than 20 percent of the recommended daily consumption of the nutrient, as in "high fibre"

- Lean: Cooked meat or poultry with less than 10.5 g of fat, of which less than 3.5 g is saturated fat, and with less than 94.5 mg of cholesterol per 100 g

- Extra Lean: Cooked meat or poultry with less than 4.9 g of fat, of which less than 1.8 g is saturated fat, and with less than 94.5 mg of cholesterol per 100 g

- Less: At least 25 percent less sodium, calories, fat, saturated fat, or cholesterol than in the regular product

- Low: Per 100 g or 3.5 ounces:

- Low sodium: less than 140 mg of sodium

- Low calorie: less than 40 calories

- Low fat: 3 g or less of fat

- Low saturated fat: 1 g or less of saturated fat and not more than 15 percent of calories from saturated fat

- Low cholesterol: 20 mg or less of cholesterol and 2 g or less of saturated fat

- More: At least 10 percent more of the nutrient than in the regular product

Source: US Food and Drug Administration

Prepared by Alexander Timoshik
Pravda.ru

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