According to the FDA, a food can be labeled fat free if it contains less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving. So, something could have 0.4 grams of fat and still be called fat free.

Maybe you’re saying, “so what.”  Here’s the issue: the words per serving.  Say you’re eating more than one serving (a serving is often a lot smaller than the portion most of us eat).  If each serving has 0.4 grams of fat it can be labeled “fat free”  — but, if you’re eating 3 servings (not such a stretch of the imagination), you’re actually eating 1.2 grams of fat (3 x 0.4 grams) in a food that’s labeled “fat free.”

Okay.  1.2 grams of fat is not a huge amount – but the example is to illustrate that it’s good to both read labels – which the FDA requires –and really understand what they mean so you know what you’re getting in your food.

Definitions of Common Terms Used On Food Packages

   Fat-free = less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving, with no added fat or oil.

   Low fat = 3 grams or less of fat per serving.

   Less fat = 25% or less fat than the comparison food.

   Saturated fat free = Less than 0.5 grams of saturated fat and 0.5 grams of trans-fatty acids per serving.

   Cholesterol-free = less than 2 mg of cholesterol per serving and 2 grams or less of saturated fat per serving.

   Low cholesterol = 20 mg or less of cholesterol per serving and 2 grams or less of  saturated fat per serving.

   Reduced calorie = at least 25% fewer calories per serving than the comparison food (the “regular” version of the same food).

   Low calorie = 40 calories or less per serving.

   Extra lean = less than 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 gram serving of meat, poultry, or seafood.

   Lean = less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 g of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 gram serving of meat, poultry, or seafood.

   Light (fat) = 50% or less of the fat in the comparison food.

   Light (calories) = one-third fewer calories than the comparison food.

   High fiber = 5 grams or more fiber per serving.

   Sugar-free = less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving.

   Reduced sugar — at least 25% less sugar per serving compared with a similar food.

   Sodium-free (salt-free) = less than 5 mg of sodium per serving.

   Low sodium = 140 mg or less per serving.

   Very low sodium = 35 mg or less per serving.

This article is part of the 30 day series of blog posts called: 30 Easy Tips for Looser Pants and Excellent Energy.

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You practically have to walk around with a cheat sheet — or whip out your cell phone to use an app — to figure out if something actually lives up to the fatty or lean promise on the product’s label.

Checking Labels Will Give You A Clue

Packaged food labels list ingredients in descending order by weight, not amount. The first ingredient listed has the greatest amount by weight — the last ingredient is the one with the least amount by weight. That’s why preservatives are usually at the end of the ingredients list.  A ton of chemicals are not necessary to increase shelf life so a little bit will do it — but fat, sugar, and grains have more heft and usually are closer to the beginning of the ingredients list.

Fat Labels

Labels have to include the total amount of fat, saturated fat and unsaturated fat.  This carves the way for the low, reduced, and fat free categories.

• Low fat means 3 grams of fat or less per serving (or per 100 grams of food)
• Reduced fat means the food product contains 50% (or less) of the fat found in the regular version
• Less fat means 25% or less fat than the comparison food
• Fat free means the product has less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving, with no added fat or oil

The Low down On Low, Light (Lite), Lean, And Reduced Calories And Fat

• Reduced calorie (calories, not fat – see above) on the label means there’s at least 25% fewer calories per serving than in the regular (full calorie) version of the product
• Low calorie (calories, not fat – see above) means 40 calories or less per serving and less than 0.4 calories per gram of food
• Light (fat) means 50% or less of the fat than in the regular, full calorie, version
• Light (calories) means 1/3 fewer calories than the regular, full calorie, version
• Lean (meat, poultry or seafood) means less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol in a 100 gram serving
• Extra lean (meat, poultry or seafood) means less than 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol in a 100 gram serving

Confused???

Are you confused by the labeling rules?  You’re not alone.  You really need to read labels and look for the amount of fat grams, not just assume that a product labeled reduced fat is indeed low in fat.

For instance, a product labeled reduced fat just means that it contains at least 50% or less fat than the original full fat version of the same product. Unfortunately, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is a low-fat product.

Here’s an example:  Look at a box of cookies or a container of ice cream labeled reduced fat.  If the fat content in the original full fat product is 20g and the fat has been reduced to 10g — a 50% reduction – the manufacturer is allowed to call the product reduced fat even though its fat content is still a little over 3 times higher than the 3 grams of fat per serving that officially qualifies as low fat.  Premium ice cream can really snooker you with this labeling simply because the full fat version may have so much fat that the reduced fat version – even with 50% less fat – still contains a significant amount of fat.

The trick is to look carefully at the calorie count and fat breakdown on the nutrition label and note the numbers for each.  A check of the ingredients label can also give you valuable information about the type of fat in the product.

Remember, these regulations apply to labeled packaged food products, not prepared food like you find in salad bars or for takeout.

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It does take time.  But, you don’t have to do it for everything.  It’s particularly important to get a feeling for products that might have a laundry list of ingredients.

It’s also really important if something screams “healthy,” “loaded with fiber,”  “reduced calorie,”  “contains a day’s worth of nutrients,” and a whole host of other “you’ve got to buy me because I’m great for your health” claims.

Does The Front Of The Box Tell You The Truth, The Whole Truth, And Nothing But The Truth?

There just might be a kernel of truth surrounded by a great big blob of calories, sugar, chemicals and other stuff.

My client pulled out an Oats and Chocolate Fiber One Chewy Bar that his wife had bought for him.   She thought that with140 calories per bar and a label emblazoned with “35% daily value of fiber,” it must be a good snack.

The Facts

According to the nutrition label, each bar has 140 calories, 4 grams of fat (1.5 grams are saturated fat), no cholesterol, 95mg of sodium, 29 grams of total carbohydrates (9 grams of which are dietary fiber and 10 grams are sugars), and 2 grams of protein.

The calorie count isn’t bad, there isn’t too much sodium, there are 9 grams of fiber, but there are also 1.5 grams of saturated fat and only 2 grams of protein.

The ingredients label:  chicory root extract, semisweet chocolate chips (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural flavor), whole grain oats, high maltose corn syrup, rice flour, barley flakes, sugar, canola oil, glycerin, maltodextrin, honey, tricalcium phosphate, palm kernel oil, soy lecithin, salt, nonfat milk, fructose, malt extract, cocoa processed with alkali, baking soda, caramel color, natural flavor, mixed tocopherols added to retain freshness.

Hmmm:  It seems that eight ingredients are sugars or forms of sugar:   # 2 (semisweet chocolate chips), 4 (high maltose corn syrup, 7 (sugar), 9 (glycerin), 10 (maltodextrin), 11 (honey), 17 (fructose), 18 (malt extract).

Not only are there a whole lot of ingredients for a 140 calorie bar, there sure is a whole lot of sugar.  Nine grams of fiber may be 35% of the daily recommended amount of fiber, but this bar is filled with sugar – 8 of its ingredients are sugar and this measly140 calories is using up a full 10% of the recommended daily value of sugar for a 2000 calorie diet.

What Do You Think?

The 35% of your daily fiber label on the front of the package is true – BUT – with this much sugar, 1.5 grams of saturated fat and only 2 grams of protein, is this a healthy food?

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I tend not to like food that wiggles but others in my family get their own selection of Technicolor wiggle food, so I checked a Jello container lurking in my fridge for some kind of date.  There it was:  Expires by ___.  Whoops – been in the fridge a little too long – or has it?

What Do The Dates Mean?

According to Weill Cornell’s Food & Fitness Advisor (2/2011), the descriptive terms refer more to the quality than the safety of the food.

• Sell by date:  how long a store can sell a product

• Best if used by date:  when the food should be eaten by for the best quality or flavor

• Use by date:  the last date to use the product for it to be at its peak quality (a lot of food is still safe to eat after this date)

• Expiration date:  There’s no absolute date that guarantees a food is safe before the stamped date – or that the food is playing house to harmful bacteria after the listed date.

Common Sense, Eyes, Nose, And Mouth

If you want to decrease your risk of a food borne disease from food gone “bad,”  use common sense, and your senses: sight, taste, and smell.

• Look at it.  If you open a container and there’s black or blue green mold even though it doesn’t expire for three weeks – get rid of it.

• Smell it.  If it stinks, you might think about doing the same (foods that are supposed to stink – like certain cheeses – require observation other than through the nose!).

• Taste it.  If it’s supposed to be okay but tastes foul, toss it.  How many times have you poured milk from a not yet expired container only to have it come out in clumps.  Or, worse yet, tasted not yet expired milk only to gag and spit?

Bottom line:  Use the dates as guides both when shopping and consuming, but use your judgment, too.  If you question the safety of the food, toss it.

“When in doubt, throw it out!”  Good advice for any food:  store bought, take-out, or prepared at home.

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