Taking the mystery out of food nutrition labels

I love nutrition labels, I read them all the time and you should too. Better yet, read them and learn to understand how they can work for you and make what you put into your mouth a healthier thing. They are not full of terms that need a Ph.D in science to figure out, in fact they are quite easy. But they won't help if you never look at them.

Each label starts out with serving sizes, calories per serving and servings per container. People can get tripped up if they don't read these carefully. For example, a pint of ice cream says it contains 180 calories and 24 grams of fat, but what you don't read carefully enough is that the pint also has four 1/2 cup servings. So if you eat the whole thing, those 180 calories are quadrupled, as is the fat amount. Suddenly you've downed 720 calories and 96 grams of fat, most of which is saturated fat- the kind that your heart doesn't really need. In that label, each serving has those calorie and fat amounts, it's not the whole container. We're all guilty of this, so let's get over it and move on. Another really important number is the sodium content. Excessive sodium in the diet causes a multitude of health problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure and circulation problems. Most, if not all packaged foods have high sodium levels simply because sodium is used as a preservative. That boxed rice mix can sit on your shelf for two years and not lose any flavor quality because it's riddled with sodium to keep it that way. Yikes! Who needs this!?? Pay attention to those sodium numbers, most Americans salt their food a lot, and if you are eating something with an already astronomically high sodium content and then adding salt, well.....it's not rocket science, like I said earlier. Dinner meals in a bag in the freezer sure seem like a nice convenience, but think about your poor heart. Take pity! Pay attention to the sugar number too. Any product carrying a sugar content over beyond 15 grams should be avoided. Most breakfast cereals have super high sugar levels. We give them to our kids and wonder why they can't concentrate. Sugar raises the blood glucose levels, flooding your body with insulin which provides a temporary energy rush. But just as quickly, the insulin amount disappears and you crash from the sugar high and feel like crap. Carbohydrates do the same thing. Sugar is not a bad thing, but most people eat way too much of it, mostly because they don't realize how insidious sugar is in their foods. It takes on many, many different faces: corn syrup, glucose, fructose, lactose and a host of other names that hide it's true identity. Carbs are one culprit of being over-consumed, but our body also needs them for energy. Most people, however, eat way too much of the wrong kind. There are complex carbs and simple carbs. Simple carbs come from things like white bread, bagels, some crackers, biscuits, cakes and candy, but there are also natural sources of these carbs that are good for you- mostly coming from fruits. These break down quickly giving you that sugar/energy rush that doesn't last very long. Complex carbs break down slower over time, giving you a more steady energy feed. More of these and less of the simple are a better way to healthier eating: whole grain breads, oatmeal, bran, brown rice, root veggies and legumes. These are by no means exhaustive lists, there are many more as well. Cholesterol is another item you will see on a food label. Our bodies produce cholesterol naturally in our fat cells and it's used to form cell membranes and some hormones. It is carried through the blood by lipoproteins, most commonly as high-density (HDL) and low-density (LDL). Quick quiz: Which one is the 'good' one??? It's the HDL, which some docs think helps remove cholesterol from the blood before it can build up as plaque in your arteries. Since our bodies are very efficient in making this, it would be safe to assume that we don't need too much added to our diet. The truth is, we don't need to eat it at all. Foods from animal sources contain it, foods from plants don't. Foods high in saturated and trans fats will increase your cholesterol level which, as we all know, can lead to many life threatening health problems. These are what I consider to be the items on a nutrition label that should get the most attention. Fiber is really important too, it's like Drano for your body in it's ability to 'clean you out'. We'll talk about knowing the hidden dangers in the food ingredients too on another post.