How to Understand and Use the Nutrition

Facts Panel on Food Labels

The Nutrition Facts panel has two parts:
The main or top section (see #1-5 on the sample nutrition label below), which contains product-
specific information (serving size, calories, and nutrient information) that varies with each food
product; and the bottom part (see #6 on the sample nutrition label below), which contains a footnote.
This footnote is only on larger packages and provides general dietary information about important
nutrients.

The Serving Size

 (#1 on sample label):
The first place to start when you look at the Nutrition Facts panel is the
serving size and the number of servings in the package. Serving sizes
are provided in familiar units, such as cups or pieces, followed by the
metric amount, e.g., the number of grams. Serving sizes are based on
the amount of food people typically eat, which makes them realistic
and easy to compare to similar foods.

Pay attention to the serving size, including how many servings there are in the food package,
and compare it to how much YOU actually eat. The size of the serving on the food package
influences all the nutrient amounts listed on the top part of the label. In the sample label above, one
serving of macaroni and cheese equals one cup. If you ate the whole package, you would eat two
cups. That doubles the calories and other nutrient numbers, including the %Daily Values as shown
below (see Calories and %Daily Value for more information).

Example
Single Double
%DV %DV
Serving Serving
Serving Size 1 cup (228g) 2 cups (456g)
Calories 250 500
Calories from Fat 110 220
Total Fat 12g 18% 24g 36%
Trans Fat 1.5g 3g
Saturated Fat 3g 15% 6g 30%
Cholesterol 30mg 10% 60mg 20%
Sodium 470mg 20% 940mg 40%
Total
31g 10% 62g 20%
Carbohydrate
Dietary Fiber 0g 0% 0g 0%
Sugars 5g 10g
Protein 5g 10g
Vitamin A 4% 8%
Vitamin C 2% 4%
Calcium 20% 40%
Iron 4% 8%

Calories and Calories from Fat

 (#2 on sample label):
Calories provide a measure of how much energy
you get from a serving of this food. The label also
tells you how many of the calories in one serving
come from fat. In the example, there are 250
calories in a serving of this macaroni and cheese.
How many calories from fat are there in ONE
serving? Answer: 110 calories, which means
almost half come from fat. What if you ate the
whole package content? Then, you would
consume two servings, or 500 calories, and 220
would come from fat.

Eating too many calories per day is linked to

overweight and obesity.

The Nutrients
(#3 and 4 on sample label):
Look at the top section in the sample nutrition label. It shows nutrients that are important for your
health and separates them into two main groups:

Limit These Nutrients

(#3 on sample label):
The nutrients listed first are the ones Americans
generally eat in adequate amounts, or even too much.
They are identified in yellow on the chart as Limit these
Nutrients. Eating too much fat, saturated fat, trans fat,
and cholesterol, or sodium may increase your risk of
certain chronic diseases, like heart disease, some cancers,
or high blood pressure. Eating too many calories is linked
to overweight and obesity.

*Note: Health experts recommend that you keep your

intake of saturated fat, trans fats and cholesterol as low
as possible as part of a nutritionally balanced diet.

Get Enough of These

 (#4 on sample label):
Americans often don't get enough dietary fiber, vitamin
A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron in their diets. They are
identified in blue on the chart as Get Enough of these
Nutrients. Eating enough of these nutrients can improve
your health and help reduce the risk of some diseases
and conditions. For example, getting enough calcium can
reduce the risk of osteoporosis, in which bones become
brittle and break as one ages (see calcium example
below).

Remember: You can not only use the food label to help limit those nutrients you want to cut
back on, but also to increase those nutrients you want to consume in greater amounts.

The Percent Daily Value (%DV):

This part of the Nutrition Facts panel tells you

whether the nutrients (fat, sodium, fiber, etc)
in a serving of food contribute a lot or a little
to your total daily diet. By diet we mean all the
different foods you eat in a day.

% DVs are based on recommendations for a

2,000 calorie diet. For labeling purposes, FDA
set 2,000 calories as the reference amount for
calculating %DVs. The %DV shows you the percent (or how much) of the recommended daily
amount of a nutrient is in a serving of food. By using the %DV, you can tell if this amount is high or
low. You, like most people, may not know how many calories you consume in a day. But you can
still use the %DV as a frame of reference, whether or not you eat more or less than 2,000 calories
each day.

It's not hard to follow nutrition experts' advice for a healthy diet. Try to limit your total daily intake of
fat, saturated fat, sodium, and cholesterol (shown in yellow on the chart) to less than 100%DV.

Likewise, you should try to get enough essential nutrients like calcium, iron, and vitamins A and C as
well as other components such as dietary fiber (shown in blue on the chart). Try to average 100% for
each one of these nutrients each day.

%DVs are easy to use.

Do you need to know how to calculate percentages to follow this advice? No, the label (the %DV)
does the math for you. It helps you interpret the numbers (grams and milligrams) by putting them all
on the same scale (0-100%DV), much like a ruler. This way you can tell high from low and know

which nutrients contribute a lot, or a little, to your daily recommended allowance (upper or lower).
Example of %DV for Total Fat: If you cover up the %DVs on the sample label, can you tell if 12g of
Total Fat is high or low? Another way of asking this question is, does one serving (containing 12g of
fat) contribute a lot or a little Total Fat to your daily diet?

Now look at the %DVs on the label example: 12g fat equals 18%DV. When one serving of macaroni
and cheese contains 18%DV for Total Fat, that means you have 82% of your fat allowance left for all
the other foods you eat that day (100%-18%=82%).

Quick Guide to %DV (#5 on sample label):

This general guide tells you that 5%DV or less is low and 20%DV or more is high. This means
that 5%DV or less is low for all nutrients, those you want to limit (e.g., fat, saturated fat, cholesterol,
and sodium), and 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.

Example: Look again at the amount of Total Fat in one serving listed on the sample nutrition label for
macaroni and cheese. Is 18%DV contributing a lot or a little to your maximum fat limit of 100% DV?
Check the Quick Guide to %DV. You see that 18%DV, which is below 20%DV, is not yet high, but
what if you ate the whole package (two servings)? You would double that amount, eating 36% of
your daily allowance for Total Fat. That amount, coming from just one food, would contribute a lot
of fat to your daily diet. It would leave you 64% of your fat allowance (100%-36%=64%) for all of
the other foods you eat that day, snacks and drinks included.
Comparisons: The %DV also makes it easy for you to make comparisons. You can compare one
product or brand to a similar product. It's easy to see which one is higher or lower in a nutrient
because the serving sizes are generally consistent for similar types of foods. See EXAMPLE below.

Pictured below are two kinds of milk–one is "Reduced Fat," the other is chocolate "Nonfat"
milk. Each serving size is one cup. Which has more calories? Which is higher in fat and
saturated fat?

REDUCED FAT MILK CHOCOLATE NONFAT

2% Milkfat MILK
Nutrient Content Claims: You can quickly distinguish one claim from another, such as "reduced
fat" vs. "light" or "nonfat." Just compare the %DVs for Total Fat in each food product to see which
one is higher or lower in that nutrient--there is no need to memorize definitions. This works when
comparing all nutrient content claims, e.g., less, light, low, free, more, high, etc.

Dietary Trade-Offs: You can use the %DV to help you make dietary trade-offs with other
foods throughout the day. You don't have to give up a favorite food to eat a healthy diet. When a food
you like is high in fat, balance it with foods that are low in fat at other times of the day. Also, pay
attention to how much you eat so that the total amount of fat for the day stays below 100%DV.

Nutrients that Have No %DV: Trans Fats, Sugars, and Protein: Note that Trans fat,
Sugars and, Protein do not list a %DV on the Nutrition Facts panel.

Trans Fat: Scientific reports link trans fat (and saturated fat)
with raising LDL ("bad") blood cholesterol levels, both of
which increase your risk of coronary heart disease, a leading
cause of death in the US. But experts could not provide a
reference value for trans fat nor any other information that
FDA believes is sufficient to establish a Daily Value or %DV.

Sugars: No daily reference value has been established because

no recommendations have been made for the total amount of
sugars to eat in a day. Keep in mind, the sugars listed on the
Nutrition Facts panel include naturally occurring sugars (like
those in fruit and milk) as well as those added to a food or
drink. Check the ingredient list for specifics on added sugars.

Protein: A %DV is required to be listed if a claim is made for

protein, such as "high in protein". Otherwise, unless the food is
meant for use by infants and children under 4 years old, none
is needed. Current scientific evidence indicates that protein
intake is not a public health concern for adults and children
over 4 years of age.

To limit nutrients that have no %DV, like trans fat and

sugars, compare the labels of similar products and choose the food with the lowest amount.
 The Footnote, or lower part o the
Nutrition Facts Panel
(#6 on sample label)

Note the * used after the heading "%Daily Value" on

the Nutrition Facts panel. It refers to the Footnote in
the lower part of the nutrition label, which tells you
that "%DVs are based on recommendations for a
2,000 calorie diet". This statement must be on all food labels. But the remaining information in the
full footnote may not be on the package if the size of the label is too small. When the full footnote
does appear, it will always be the same. It doesn't change from product to product, because it shows
dietary advice for all Americans--it is not about a specific food product.

The Daily Values are based on expert dietary advice about how much, or how little, of some key
nutrients you should eat each day, depending on whether you eat 2,000 or 2,500 calories a day.

Example: look at the Total Fat information in the footnote. It tells you that if you eat a 2,000 calorie
diet, you should eat less than 65g of fat in all the foods you eat in a day. By doing this, you will
follow nutrition experts' advice to consume no more than 30 percent of your daily calories from fat.
Because the DV for total fat is "less than 65g," this is the same thing as saying, to keep your total fat
intake for the day below 100%DV.

If you consume 2,500 calories per day, the Footnote shows you how your daily values would change
for some nutrients but not for others. The Daily Values for Cholesterol (300mg) and Sodium
(2,400mg sodium) remain the same no matter how many calories you eat. But recommended levels of
intake for other nutrients do depend on how many calories you consume. Remember: %DVs listed
on the top half of the food label are based on recommendations for a 2,000 calorie diet, not a
2,500 calorie diet.