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THE WELLNESS CENTER

Understanding Labels and Health Claims

At home, you can eat only what is available. For your weight management program to be successful, you must master the art of low-fat shopping. If what you have in your refrigerator and cupboards is junk food, chances are you'll eat that in place of healthy, low-fat foods that satisfy and provide energy. Before you head to the store, you should have a clear understanding of how to read labels so you can make the healthiest, wisest choices of foods you will enjoy. The following are key words for properly understanding food product labels:

After you have a clear understanding of the key label words, there are five other important values you will want to consider before concluding that the food product is a healthy, low-fat food.

1. Check the List of Ingredients. Ingredients are listed in descending order according to their quantity in that food. The first three or four ingredients listed usually make up most of the product. Keep in mind, however, that fat and sugar come in many different forms; even if they are not one of the first three ingredients, the food can still be very high in fat and/or sugar. Other "names" of fat include hydrogenated vegetable shortening, butter, margarine, oil (coconut, safflower, palm, etc.), lecithin, lard, and cream solids. Other names of sugars include fructose, honey, corn sweeteners, molasses, maltose, corn syrup, fructose, glucose, and dextrose. If only one of these names appears among the first few ingredients on the label, or if several of them are listed throughout the label, this food is likely to be high in fat or sugar.

2. Pay Attention to Total Fat and Saturated Fat. When checking the label of a food, always check the line that reads "total fat." Most experts believe you should get no more than 25 percent of total daily calories from fat. For someone who weighs 160 pounds, that would be about 72 grams a day. So before purchasing any food, check the total fat to see if that product fits into your eating plan. Right below the "total fat" line is "saturated fat." Again, you want this number to be very low, since this type of fat is linked to obesity and heart disease. No more than 10 percent of your calories should come from saturated fats. For the average person, this is between 7-10 grams a day.

3. Figure Out the Percentage of Calories from Fat. In addition to listing the ingredients, labels give you the information you need to determine the percentage of calories from fat in a specific food product. Knowing this is actually far more important than simply knowing the number of grams of fat in the food product. Just as you want less than 25 percent of your total daily calories to be from fat, you also want to try to eat foods that get less than 25 percent of their total calories from fat. Because a food product has a low number of fat grams, it is not necessarily a low-fat, healthy food.

Take, for example, a reduced-fat whipping cream. Many people assume that since this product only has 1.5 grams of fat per serving that it is a healthy dessert topping (often justifying double or triple the amount on their dessert). However, this product contains actually 45 percent fat. On the other hand, a common nutrition bar has 5 grams of fat per serving. Many dieters would not touch this product for fear of so much fat, when, in actuality, this product contains only 12 percent fat.

How can a food that only has 1.5 grams of fat per serving have a higher percentage of fat calories than a product that contains 5 grams of fat. It is quite simple: The whipped topping only contains 30 calories per serving whereas the nutrition bar contains 380. The nutrition bar is packed with protein and carbohydrates, giving the product a lot more nutritious food value and more calories. Since the whipped topping only contains 30 calories, it has very little nutritional value and quite a bit of fat relative to the total volume of food and calories. When checking labels, be sure to figure out the percentage of fat calories in addition to the number of fat grams.

To determine the percentage of calories from fat of a food product, look for two important numbers: calories per serving and total grams of fat per serving. Since you want to know what percentage of the total calories are fat calories, you must first convert the grams of fat into calories. Remember, there are 9 calories per gram of fat.

To calculate the fat percentage of the food:

a) Multiply the number of grams of fat by the number 9 (9 calories per gram of fat).
b) Divide this number by the total calories per serving.
c) The result is the percentage of fat calories (should be less than 25).

4. Pay Attention to Serving Size. When you see that your favorite frozen yogurt only has 4 grams of fat per serving, be sure to check the serving size. The FDA has decided that a single serving of yogurt is only 1/2 cup. Most people eat at least 1 1/2 cups of their favorite yogurt or ice cream and thus in this example, eat 12 grams of fat. Before you buy any food, multiply a realistic serving size times the total grams of fat. If the food comes up high in fat, you may want to either limit the serving size or purchase something else.

5. Pay Attention to Fiber. Move down the label until you come to "dietary fiber." Fiber is very beneficial to the human diet. A diet rich in fiber promotes fat loss when these high-fiber foods replace fats and sweets. This is possible because fibrous foods offer fewer calories per gram (4 calories/gram) than fat (9 calories/gram) are not easily converted to fat, and have the ability to expand up to 10 times their weight and size in the stomach. Thus, fiber makes us feel fuller and satisfied for a longer time. Fiber can give you an edge on weight management not only by satisfying your appetite, but also by slowing down calorie absorption and sustaining your energy levels. In addition, a high-fiber diet helps prevent hemorrhoids, diarrhea, appendicitis, and colon cancer. Fiber also helps lower cholesterol levels, decreasing the risk of heart disease. Most experts recommend that you get at least 25-30 grams of fiber a day. Therefore, when reading labels, remember, higher is always better.

Of course, not everything you'll want to eat or drink will be labeled. For example, nutrition labeling for many foods, such as fresh fruits and vegetables or fresh meat, poultry and fish is voluntary. And labeling on packaged foods under 12 square inches, such as miniature candy bars, is also voluntary. Remember, you are not counting and figuring out the fat percentage to decide if you should eat that food, but rather to learn from experience and become a more conscious eater. The more you practice and experience, the more you will learn and the easier it will be to gradually modify and decrease the fat in your foods.
In addition to having a clear understanding of a product's nutrition label, you should also understand exactly what the different health claims on products mean. The following is a list of health claims that are often misinterpreted by consumers:

The way to lower fat in your diet and making healthier changes is to become a fat-conscious eater--and this requires that you understand labels and know the amount of fat in each food. However, instead of counting fat grams and deciding if it is a "good food" or a "bad food," try to balance the foods you are eating so that you average 25 percent or less of your total calories from fat each day. What's crucial is to learn how to make small healthier changes. Consume fat in moderation by balancing higher fat foods with lower fat foods. I hope this helps. Good luck and enjoy your new, healthier lifestyle.

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