Nutrition is very important to achieve you target physique. How do you measure/check you food nutrition? Do you read the Nutrition Facts food labels when you shop? Food and Drugs Administration FDA has required these labels to be placed on food packaging. The Nutrition Facts food labels are easy to find on the back, side or bottom of the packaging. A food label should list the country of origin of the food product
Food labels carry useful information to help you make choices on the food. The food label will tell you if the food contains an additive that you may or may not want to avoid. The nutrition information helps you to compare the nutrient profile of similar products and choose the one that suits you best.
Foods with a shelf life of less than two years must have a ‘best before’ or ‘use-by’ date. These terms mean different things. The ‘best before’ date refers to the quality of the food – food stored in the recommended way will remain of good quality until that date. It may still be safe to eat certain foods after the ‘best before’ date, but they may have lost quality and some nutritional value. By contrast, foods that should not be consumed after a certain date for health and safety reasons must have a ‘use-by’ date and cannot be sold after that date. You will find ‘use-by’ dates on perishables such as meat, fish and dairy products.
Some foods carry the date they were manufactured or packed, rather than a ‘use-by’ date, so you can tell how fresh the food is. For example, bread and meat can be labelled with a ‘baked on’ or ‘packed on’ date. You should:
- Check the ‘use-by’ or ‘best before’ date when you buy food.
- Keep an eye on the ‘use-by’ or ‘best before’ dates on the food in your cupboards. Don’t eat any food that is past its ‘use-by’ date, even if it looks and smells okay.
OVERVIEW
The information in the main or top section no.1-4 and no.6 on the sample nutrition, can vary with each food product it contains product specific information (serving size, calories, and nutrient information). The bottom part no.5 contains a footnote with Daily Values (DVs) for 2,000 and 2,500 calorie diets. This footnote provides recommended dietary information for important nutrients, including fats, sodium and fiber. The footnote is found only on larger packages and does not change from product to product.
SERVING SIZE
First area to look at is the serving size and the number of serving in the package. The serving size on the food package influences the number of calories and its nutrient listed on the top part of the label. Pay attention to the serving size, especially how many servings there are in the food package. Then ask yourself, "How many servings am I consuming"?
CALORIE
NUTRIENTS
Limit this nutrient. Eating too much fat, saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, or sodium may increase your risk of certain chronic diseases, like heart disease, some cancers, or high blood pressure.
Understanding the Footnote on the Bottom of the Nutrition Facts Label
Note the * used after the heading "%Daily Value" on the Nutrition Facts label. It refers to the Footnote in the lower part of the nutrition label, which tells you "%DVs are based on a 2,000 calorie diet". The amounts circled in red in the footnote--these are the Daily Values (DV) for each nutrient listed and are based on public health experts' advice. DVs are recommended levels of intakes. DVs in the footnote are based on a 2,000 or 2,500 calorie diet.
The Percent Daily Value (%DV)
5%DV or less is low and 20%DV or more is high This guide tells you that 5%DV or less is low for all nutrients, those you want to limit (e.g., fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium), or for those that you want to consume in greater amounts (fiber, calcium, etc). As the Quick Guide shows, 20%DV or more is high for all nutrients.
REFERENCE http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/ConsumerInformation/ucm078889.htm#seeimage2
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