Know what you're getting
Do a little detective work next time you're in the grocery store. Your goal is to know what you're buying so you can limit fat and calories before you get the food home. Read a product's Nutrition Facts label, found right on its packaging.
Begin with serving size
At the top of the label, you'll find the serving size and number of servings in the package. Serving sizes are standardized to make it easier to compare similar foods.
The serving size affects the number of calories in the box and all the nutrient amounts listed. So pay attention to the number of servings in the package. If you eat the entire contents and the serving size is 2, you've doubled your fat grams and calories.
Watch the calories
The calorie section of the label tells you how many calories you'll eat in a single serving of the product. Remember: The number of servings you consume determines the number of calories you actually eat.
What's % Daily Value mean?
The % Daily Values (% DVs) are based on the Daily Value recommendations for key nutrients. The % DV helps you determine if a serving of food is high or low in a nutrient.
You can also use the % DV for:
- Comparing one product to another. Just make sure the serving sizes are similar. It's easy to see which foods are higher or lower in nutrients because the serving sizes are usually consistent for similar types of foods
- Comparing product claims, 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
What the claims are saying
Need help understanding product claims? Here's a quick reference guide to their meaning:
- Calorie free: Fewer than 5 calories per serving
- Low calorie: 40 calories or less per serving
- Light (lite): At least one-third fewer calories or no more than half the fat of the regular product, or no more than half the sodium of the regular product per serving
- Sugar free: Less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving
- Fat free: Less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving
- Low-saturated fat: 1 gram or less per serving
- Low fat: 3 grams or less per serving
- Low in saturated fat: 1 gram of saturated fat or less, with not more than 15 percent of the calories coming from saturated fat per serving
- Reduced fat or less fat: At least 25% less fat than the regular product per serving
- Cholesterol free: Less than 2 milligrams of cholesterol and 2 grams (or less) of saturated fat per serving
- Low cholesterol: 20 milligrams or less and 2 grams or less saturated fat per serving
- Reduced cholesterol: At least 25% less cholesterol than the regular product and 2 grams or less of saturated fat per serving
- Lean: Less than 10 grams of fat and 4.5 grams or less of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol per serving
- Extra lean: Less than 5 grams of fat, less than 2 grams of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol per serving
- Sodium free or no sodium: Less than 5 milligrams of sodium and no sodium chloride in ingredients per serving
- Low sodium: 140 milligrams or less per serving
- Reduced or less sodium: At least 25 percent less sodium than the regular product per serving
- Very low sodium: 35 milligrams or less of sodium per serving
- High fiber: 5 grams or more of fiber per serving
- Good source of fiber: 2.5 to 4.9 grams of fiber per serving
myalliplan gives you the tools to learn more about reading labels. You'll also discover fat gram and calorie counts in common foods, equipping you to track your fat grams and calories. After you purchase alli™, register with myalliplan to use the nutrition and package label tools.