Ever wondered exactly what the nutrition label on foods tells you? We often get asked, “How do I read this and know how much is too much and how much is good for me?”
To help answer that question, we’ve put together a quick guide for reading and making sense of the information on food labels. And we’ve included some guidelines for suitable amounts of fat, fiber, sugar, and more:
General Nutritional Guidelines for Daily and Per Meal Consumption
Total Fat:
Women: 10-15 g fat per meal or 2-3 g fat per serving
Men: 10-20 g fat per meal or 3-5 g fat per serving
Saturated Fat:
Women: 3-5 g saturated fat per meal or 5% or less of the daily value
Men: 5-7 g saturated fat per meal or 5% or less of daily value
Trans fat:
0 grams of trans fat per meal (even though some food labeled “zero trans fat” may contain high amounts of fat)
Cholesterol:
limit to less than 300 mg per day or <100 mg per meal.
Sodium:
1500-2400 mg/d
<800 mg sodium per meal or frozen entrée
<400 mg sodium per side dish or canned food
Carbohydrates:
Women: 45 g per meal and 15 g per snack
Men: 60 g per meal and 15-30 g per snack
Fiber:
25-35 g fiber per day or >3 g fiber per serving
Sugar:
Check the ingredients list for sugar and high fructose corn syrup in the first 4 ingredients, if it is, that’s not a good sign. This means there is “added sugar.” This sugar does not come from natural sources.
Content provided by Tara Mulcahy
