Nutrition labels can be confusing if you have never looked at one, or been taught how to read one. This post will explain the most important parts of a nutrition label in one place.
Key parts of a nutrition label:
Servings per container: this is the amount of servings that are in that one container (in the whole bag, in the whole box, etc.)
Serving Size: This is the size of one serving. All of the information on a nutrition label is for ONE single serving. With this label specifically, if you drank one cup of low-fat milk, you would be consuming all of the nutritional values on this label (the amount of fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals at the bottom)
"Empty Calories": This is a term used when the food that you consume has a lot of calories and very little nutritional value. For example, sugary cereals contain little nutritional value, you could switch to eating oatmeal instead. Oatmeal has more nutrients for the amount of calories that you are consuming.
Things to watch for: You want to aim for foods with low added sugar, low fats and low sodium. Most foods have all of these, our recommendation is to consume them in moderation. That means, to make sure you are looking at labels and avoiding high levels of them when you can. If you are trying to manage your weight this is highly important.
Below is a video explaining a few rules/tips for reading nutrition labels.
Link to video in Spanish:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDnETndcY2A&t=9s
Brought to you by 😀SacKid Wellness & Center of Excellence in Diabetes and Endocrinology