Label the diagram with the recommended levels of daily food intake for an average person.

Pay attention to the calories per serving and how many calories you’re really consuming if you eat the whole package. If you double the servings you eat, you double the calories and nutrients.

The next section of information on a nutrition label is about the amounts of specific nutrients in the product.

3 - Limit certain nutrients.

Check key nutrients and understand what you’re looking for. Not all fats are bad , and total sugars can include both natural and added sugars. Limit the amounts of added sugars , saturated fat  and sodium you eat, and avoid trans fat. When choosing among different brands or similar products, compare labels and choose foods with less of these nutrients when possible..

4 - Get enough of the beneficial nutrients.

Make sure you get enough of the nutrients your body needs, such as: calcium, choline, dietary fiber, iron, magnesium, potassium, and vitamins A, C, D and E.*

5 - Understand % Daily Value.

The % Daily Value (DV) tells you the percentage of each nutrient in a single serving, in terms of the daily recommended amount. If you want to consume less of a nutrient (such as saturated fat or sodium), choose foods with a lower % DV (5 percent or less). If you want to consume more of a nutrient (such as fiber), choose foods with a higher % DV (20 percent or more).

Here are more tips for getting as much health information as possible from the Nutrition Facts label:

• Remember that the information shown in the label is based on a diet of 2,000 calories a day. You may need less or more than 2,000 calories depending upon your age, gender, activity level, and whether you’re trying to lose, gain or maintain your weight.
   
• When the Nutrition Facts label says a food contains “0 g” of trans fat, but includes “partially hydrogenated oil” in the ingredient list, it means the food contains some trans fat, but less than 0.5 grams per serving. So, if you eat more than one serving, you could end up eating too much trans fat.
• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the Nutrition Facts label seen on packaged foods and drinks. In 2016, the FDA released changes to the label to make it easier to see how many calories and added sugars are in a product and to make serving sizes more realistic. These changes are still being implemented throughout the food industry, so for now you may see the redesigned version shown here or the old original version.

*Source: 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans 

Summary

• Best-before date indicates how long food will remain of good quality – food is still safe to eat after this date.
• Do not eat food after the use-by date because it may be unsafe to eat.
• Ingredients are listed on products in descending order by weight so that the first ingredient listed is always present in the largest amount and can be useful when comparing products. Fats, sugars and salt may be listed under several different names.
• Using the 'per 100g' or 'per 100mL' column of the nutrition information panel on food packages is the best way to compare similar products.
• Some terms and symbols used by manufacturers can be misleading but nutrition claims and health claims on food labels must meet strict guidelines.
• Percentage Daily Intake (%DI) and Health Star Rating (HSR) symbols on labels can be useful to measure nutrient amounts of some products, provided they are used correctly, and their limitations are understood.

This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:

This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:

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