Food Label Reading
Name_____________________________ Date___________
One of the most transferable skills you will learn in this course is how to read a food label. During our
unit on biomolecules (lipids (fats), carbohydrates and proteins) you will learn how important these
chemicals function in your body. You will also be able to relate that to the foods you consume.
Why Read the Food Label?
When you shop it is easy to get caught up in buying foods that look appealing. The product
packaging is designed to catch your eye. You might see “reduced fat,” “fat free,” “light” or “sugar
free” on the front of a package. Just remember the bottom line is that all these companies are
basically trying to sell you something, they all want a piece of your food budget. To find out what is
really inside you need to read the food label. By comparing the labels on products, you can plan a
balanced diet and cut down on fat, salt, and sugar for better health.
The food label is also where the manufacturer confesses its definition of a serving size. A single
serving of a Snickers candy bar is about half of a 2-oz bar. A serving of ice cream is usually a half-
cup. The serving size of many individual or small sized frozen pizzas is 1/3 of the “small” pizza.
The moral of this story is – read your labels. The more you know about the product, the better off
you will be.
What is a Gram?
A gram is a small unit of weight that weighs about the same as a small paper clip. A milligram is
much smaller. There are 1000 milligrams in one gram. There are about 30 grams in one ounce. One
ounce weighs the same as a stack of 4 quarters.
What are Calories? – the amount of energy available from a food
Calories in every food come from only four sources:
Proteins Carbohydrates Fats (lipids) Alcohol
Vitamins and minerals do not contain any calories.
Protein is found in all animal foods like meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk, and cheese. Beans are also a
good source of protein. Grains and vegetables have smaller amounts of protein. Each gram of
protein has 4 calories.
Carbohydrate includes sugars, starch, and fiber. The foods highest in carbohydrate are fruits,
grains, and milk. Vegetables have smaller amounts of carbohydrates. Each gram of carbohydrate
has 4 calories.
Fat is found in animal foods like meat, poultry, fish, and dairy products. It is also found in nuts and
oils from soybeans, corn, olives, etc. Each gram of fat has 9 calories.
Alcohol is found in items such as beer, wine, and liquor. Each gram of alcohol has roughly 7
calories.
at exactly does a food label tell you? – Here is a food label for Crunchy Cheetos
Serving size (this is the number/mass of the food that relates to all the information about the food to follow.)
This is very important when counting calories.
Calories – food energy
Calories from fat People pay
attention to
calories because if you eat more calories than
your body uses, you might gain weight.
People check the number of calories from fat because it's
good to limit fat intake to about 30% of the calories they
eat.
Cholesterol & Sodium – many people keep
track of these items for health reasons
Carbohydrates are your body's primary source of energy.
This total is broken down into grams of sugar and grams of
dietary fiber. If you take in too many carbohydrate
calories your body will store them as fat. Fiber is
indigestible by humans and is very helpful because it will
clean out your intestines on its way back out.
Proteins. Your body needs protein to build and
repair essential parts of the body, such as muscles, blood,
and organs. Protein is often measured in grams.
Vitamins and Minerals – you might see Vitamin A, C,
types of B vitamins, Calcium, Iron and more here – these
all are very important parts of the human diet.
Total amounts you should consume per day
Number of calories per gram of specific nutrients
Questions for understanding:
1. In your own words, describe why it is important to read a food label.
2. If you ate a four ounce serving of cheese how many quarters would weigh the same amount
as the cheese?
3. Explain what a food calorie is and what the sources of food calories are.
4. Name 3 foods for each of the following categories: proteins, carbohydrates & fats.
5. A serviing of ice cream is ½ a cup, Alana is starving after a track meet and eats 2 cups of ice
cream. Each serving of ice cream contains 130 calories. How many calories did Alana
consume?
6. Jenn found out she was anemic – she needs to eat more iron, where on the food label should
she look to find out if a food contains iron?
7. John’s grandfather was just diagnosed with a heart condition and he needs to lose weight. He
asked John to read the food label on his favorite ice cream and tell him how many calories it
contained from fat. The label was smudged and all John could see was that the ice cream
contained 20 grams of fat. How many calories from fat are in the ice cream?
According to the two food labels, which food is lower in saturated fat?
What about these two foods, which is lower in saturated fat?
Which of these foods is lower in cholesterol?
If you were trying to decrease your fat intake which chips would you eat and why?