- 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, galactose,
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.
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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:
- Free: Example: fat-free. This
means that the food product has so little of the nutrient in
it that it would not even show up on your dietary screen
(usually >.5 gram/serving).
- Low: Example: low-calorie or
low-fat. This means that the food product does not have much
of a certain nutrient, but it has enough to make a
difference in your diet. Specifically, low-fat means 3 grams
or less of total fat; low-saturated fat means one gram or
less; low-cholesterol means less than 20 milligrams; and
low-calorie means 40 calories or fewer per serving.
- Lean: This term refers to meat.
Lean means one serving has less than 10 grams of total fat,
4 grams of saturated fat, and 95 milligrams of cholesterol.
- Extra lean: This term also
refers to meat. This means that one serving has less than 5
grams of total fat and 2 grams of saturated fat.
- Less: This means there is 25
percent less of a certain ingredient or nutrient as compared
to a similar product.
- Reduced: This means the product
was nutritionally altered to meet a health claim.
|
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.
By Chad Tackett
Chad Tackett, the
President of Global Health and Fitness (GHF), has degrees in Exercise and
Heath Science and Nutrition, is a Certified Personal Trainer, and is a
regular guest lecturer to both professional and lay audiences on the
principles of effective exercise and eating habits. Visit GHF http://global-fitness.com
and you'll find easy-to-follow fitness recommendations, hundreds of
exercise instructions and video demonstrations, customized programs,
healthy recipes and cooking/shopping strategies, health club/personal
trainer directories, and much more! |
