We are bombarded with health and nutrition information every single day. Some of it good information. Some of it bad. And many times it’s really difficult to decide which it is. It can be a lot to sort through. And, as parents, keeping our kids healthy is one of our most important goals. They depend on us to do what’s best for them and, just as importantly, to teach them how to make smart, informed decisions about their own health. Educating and empowering our kids to make smart choices is one of the greatest things we can do for them. But first we need to understand it ourselves!
So where does a person start when it comes to sorting through the ins and outs of proper nutrition for her and her family? Well we can start by focusing on the facts. Are you a label reader? There is a lot of really useful information right there on the labels of packaged foods that you buy. It’s a lot of information but once you understand what you’re looking at labels are a great way to give you some guidance about the nutrition in your food.
Serving Size
The first piece of information listed on every food label is serving size. The serving size listed may or may not be the same amount that you normally eat. It’s simply the quantity used to calculate the rest of the numbers in the nutrition facts table that follows. Checking that serving size is really important. Although similiar products may use the same serving size they don’t always.
These food labels are both taken from boxes of popular cereals. As you can see the serving size is not the same. By checking a product’s serving size, you can:
- understand how much of a nutrient you are eating
- compare calories and nutrients between 2 similar packaged food products
- compare it to the amount you actually eat
So if you eat 1 cup of cereal A (instead of the 3/4 serving size listed) you need to add 25% to the numbers in the nutrition facts table (just multiply the numbers by 1.25) to get the values for the serving size you are actually eating. If you have any questions about serving size you can do some more reading about it here.
% Daily Value
Percent daily value is on your food labels to show you if the serving size has a little of a lot of nutrients. When looking at the values keep in mind that 5% or less is a little and 15% or more is a lot. Keep in mind that the percent daily value is a useful tool in helping you determine the amount of nutrients in packaged foods but it’s not meant to track the total amount of nutrients you have in a day because much of the food we eat like fresh fruits and veggies, meat and fish (that are bought raw), many in store bakery items and salads don’t have labels with nutritional information.
The % DV for the following nutrients must be listed in the nutrition facts table:
- fat
- saturated and trans fats
- sodium
- carbohydrate
- fibre
- vitamin A
- vitamin C
- calcium
- iron
You can use % DV to choose products that are higher in the nutrients you may want more of like – fibre, vitamin A, calcium and iron. You can also choose products that are lower in the nutrients you may want less of like – saturated and trans fats and sodium.
These labels are from two cans of soup. Because the serving size happens to be the same we can quickly compare the percent daily values. By comparing the labels we can easily determine that if eating less fat and sodium are part of your healthy lifestyle then the first soup is the better choice.
Putting it all together
1. START with Serving Size – Information in the Nutrition Facts table is based on this quantity of food.
2. USE % Daily ValueUse – The % Daily Value to see if the Serving Size has a little or a lot of a nutrient.
3. LOOK at a Nutrient – Choose packaged food that has more of the nutrients you want and less of the nutrients you don’t want.
MAKE an informed food choice
So do you have it all figured out now? How would you like to test your knowledge and enter to win a $300 grocery gift card? Until March 31 you can take a quick “Focus on the Facts” quiz and enter to win! If you want to brush up on your knowledge before the quiz or just want some more information to help you make good nutrition decisions you can find all kinds of great information at Canada.ca/NutritionFacts.
Another Chance to Win!
If you haven’t already go on over and take the Focus on Facts quiz for your change to win a $300 grocery gift card. And I’m also pleased to be able my readers the change to win a $100 grocery gift card right here on the blog! Just use the form below to enter. Good luck!
This post was a sponsored post. The opinions are completely my own
protein, sugar and fat
Sodium and sugar are the most important. I'll often check the fat content too but to be honest, I usually know what is (too) high in fat before I even pick it up.
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I look for sugar content & protein.
I always look for added sugar and sweet syrups on labels. I also like the nutritional value on the labels!
Anne Taylor is my name on the form.
to me I look for fat content as I am currently on a weight loss plan
The main nutrients I pay attention to are Carbohydrates and Sodium
I look for sugar, the fats, iron and fibre.
Calories is the most important.
I usually look for the fat content and sugar
Protein and calories per serving are important to me.
I check for sugar, fat and protein content on labels.
Carbs! I am on a bit of a carb kick lately!
When I check food labels I always look for sodium, fat and sugar content.
I look at sugar, fat, protein and calories.
i try to choose lower sugar and lower sodium options
When I look at food labels, I look at the serving size, calories, and fibre content.
I always check for sugar, fat and sodium contents in food.
I look at fibre and sugar content
I look at sodium and fat.
I usually look for the saturated fat content and sugars
I look at fiber, fat and sugar most of the time.
I look at the sodium, carbs and vitamins
Since having blood pressure trouble,sodium is number one.Before that it was sugar and calories
I look for low sugar and high protein when shopping.
I'm big on fats/sodium and nutrient value.
Protein and fibre are important, and I always see the amount of sat. fat and sugars there is too!!
I look for low fat and low sugar.
I usually look for sugar and sodium content in a product when shopping.
The sugar and the sodium is most important to me
I need to know the sodium levels and sugar levels
Sugar, fat and sodium
i really check for the sugar and fat content.
The vitamins and fat
I look for the amount of calories and the amount of sugar.
I look for high fibre as well as how much sugar is in the food!
I like to look at the sugar and sodium levels.
Sugar, salt, protein and fat are the most important nutrients when looking at labels. Some ingredients I have no idea what they are and I don't like that.
I look for high fibre on nutrition labels.
Jonnie
Most important to me starts with sodium and carbs and saturated fat.
Fat contest, fibre content and vitamins.
I look for salt content, carbs, fats, protein, and anything foreign I will look up.
Sugar and sodium is what I look for most
I always check the sugar and carbs in products.
High in protein and fibre and low in sodium and sugar.
Sugar, sodium and trans fats.
I always look for sodium!
I look for sugar and sodium content
I check for sugar and sodium….those are the ones that are hidden.
Sugar amounts are most important to me!
I look out most for sugar and sodium content.
Sodium and sugar content are the most important ones to me. For cheese we try to buy lower milk fat % content.
fat and sodium!
I look for fibre and protein content!
Net carbs are the biggest thing for me.
sodium content
I always look at calories, fiber and sugar content
Salt and sugar added
Sugar and sodium….but mostly sugar.
Fat, fibre, protein and sugar content are all important to me.
Calcium is an important nutrient that I look for on labels.
I am usually checking for carbs & fibre although fat & protein are on my radar too.
When looking at food labels the salt and sugars contents are most important
I look for sugar and fat
Sugar is most important to me, but I generally try to buy as much as I can that is whole foods which have no packaging!
The fat and sugar contents
I always check for sodium level, calories and fats when I check labels.
I always look at sugar and protein because I have hypoglycemia so they are very important for me.
The nutrients that are the most important to me when looking at food labels are the sodium and sugar content.
I like to avoid fats & sugars, and look for higher fiber content.
For me its the fat content and the protein and fibre
I look at labels to avoid sodium and sugars where I can, and hope to find protein and fibre and vitamins
for us it's the salt and sugars
i look for potassium
For health reasons, calcium and vitamin D are most important to me.
i look for no salt no sugar
i pay attention to protein and sugars. also no trans fats
I look at carbs, salt, calories and fat.
Fiber is important and also protein
Trans fat and calories
Actually I dont even care much about food labels. As long as it suits my taste buds, its going down the hatch. I guess if I had an allergy I would care. My wife on the other hand has high blood pressure so she looks for low sodium.
I look for fiber, protein and low sugar
I always look at sugar and calories
I look to see the fats and sodium levels.
I usually look for the fat content.
I look at the fat, sugar and carbs.
My husband is diabetic so I always check sugar and sodium first.
I looking at the sugar, fat and sodium contents
Whole grains and fibre are the most important to me.
Sodium and fat!
For us it is carbs and fiber. My son has type 1 diabetes so we need to be aware
protein and sugar and vitamins
Sodium, fat & sugar, I try to buy products that don't contain too much of them.
sodium, sugar and fats
I always look at the sugars
I look for fiber and low sugar content.
I look for low sodium and iron on a label.
I always be careful of how much sodium and fat. I also like a high protein
Honestly, I don't look at the labels at all. The foods my family consumes are probably not the best..
I usually have a pretty good understanding of what good to expect from a particular product, so I look at the labels to find out what shouldn't be there, so, instead of the nutrients, I'm looking for the bad stuff and unexpected surprises.
The first thing i take note of is the Carbs. (Sugar) if they're too high, i'll pass on an item and look for a low carb alternative.
I look at sugar, fat and carbs.
I look a the amount of sodium, calories, fat and carbs.
I hone in on protein and fibre.
Sugars, Fats, Sodium and Protien. I need to get my Blood Pressure and Cholesterol under control.
i usually look at how much iron, and gluten free. my stomach can't take gluten or something
fat and sugars are the ones I look for to avoid. I love label reading!
I am always checking Iron % as I need a lot of it! <3
I look to see what the first few ingredients are, if they include sugar or an kind of OSE in the first few words I pass it by.
sugar
I look for protein as I want to build some muscle
I always check for the sugar and sodium contents on food labels. I love to check the fibre percentage too.
I look for the sodium and fats
I look to see how low trans fat, sugar and sodium are and if there is any protein.
i always look at the amount of sodium — if it is too high, i put it back… also i keep tabs on sugars and fats
Sodium and sugar content
Protein is important to me.
Sodium, fats and sugar are important nutrients I look for on labels
sugar and fat are most important for me.
I check for sugar, fat and protein
For me it is fibre as I need as much as I can get!
I am always looking at FIBRE on labels – its so important for health!
I grew up with a mother who was diabetic so I always check the sugar and carbs/
The amount of sugar in a serving.
Calories and protein.
The nutrients most important to me when looking at food labels are the fat and sodium.
I keep track of the sodium content and the carbohydrates of products.
sugar and vitamins
Sugar and sodium, plus msg disguise names.
I mainly only look for low sugar.
I read the labels to look for high fibre and iron content and also less sugar and salt
because my husband is a diabetic.
Number one thing I look at is the sugar content and whether it’s coming from a natural source or not.
protein and sugar and fat are what i take most note of
Sugar, fat, content interest me, I wish to realize and count calories.
Because I'm working on losing weight, calories and fat are really important to me and what I tend to pay the most attention to.
i look for sugar content and nutritionals value, if I cant read and understand the ingredient s I don't buy it
search for more fiber and healthy food