Food Labels

Question: Food Labels!? Explain how the labeling system allows the consumer to compare the food's nuutritive value when the serving size is different?

Answer: Similar foods have similar if not exactly the same serving sizes. For example, one serving of milk is a cup and so is one serving of soy milk and one serving of rice milk. If you are comparing foods by nutrients per unit of weight, like 4 ounces, then you have to do the math. Divide the nutrient numbers by the number of ounces in one serving as it is indicated on the label. You will then have the nutrient value of one ounce of the food. Do the same for each food. Then you will have a clear per ounce nutrition instead of per serving nutrition. Now that wasn't so hard was it?

Question: Food labels!? should Produce have their origin labels on them so we know where they came from? and would it be nessessary?

Answer: Yes. And even more than origin, the labels should include whether or not the produce is genetically modified. That is just as important as country of origin.

Question: How do I know what to look for on food labels? I'm very paranoid about what goes into the food I eat. I'm reading as much as I can on the subject of healthy eating and what's added to our food. However, I'm still not very good at reading the labels on food. What ingredients should I be wary of? Which types of labels can be deceiving? And how many grams of fat is considered too much?

Answer: just make everything yourself, from raw ingredients i did this for a while and died from boredom and OCD

Question: Is information on the food labels always correct and accurate? It seems like a lot of magazines, newspapers, TVs, websites, etc, warn people about false information on the food labels.

Answer: They are deceptive. For instance, a product might say it's only 90 calories but you need to read how many servings are in the product you are buying. A small bag of potato chips might have 100 calories per serving and there are three servings per bag. That means that if you eat the whole bag you are eating 300 calories. Hope that helps.

Question: How do you read calories on food labels? I was told to read the labels to see how much calories or saturated fat does a food contains...which exactly is the amount or what to look for if you want to loose weight?

Answer: Here you can count how many calories you need in a day: http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2005/12/26/how_to_calculate_your_daily_calorie_needs.php Avoid cookies, sugary snacks, ice cream, chips and chocolate. If you crave for sweet, have some dried fruit, but not every day. Good luck !

Question: questions about food labels and portion size? I dont know where to find answer for these questions. Please help me. What do food labels have to offer in diet planning? Do food labels accurately reflect the portions most people eat? How could food labels be revised to be more useful to the consumer?

Answer: Food labels do not accurately reflect the portions most people eat, but rather what they SHOULD eat (or at least I think so). Cookies are supposed to be a snack so, as the package says, a serving is 2, not 20. The only possible revision I could see would be to find the average serving for every kind of food, and include that in a separate column so you can see how much you'll actually be consuming (unless you actually stick to the suggested serving, of course).

Question: How do I get rebates or discounts from collecting pet food labels? I volunteer at an Animal Rescue Organization http://www.Rcatsanddogs.org we have tons of Special Kitty wet food labels, Pedigree, and Purina labels. How can we collect these labels for rewards? Thanks, Animal Lovers! I volunteer at an Animal Rescue organization http://www.Rcatsanddogs.org We have lots of Special Kitty, Pedigree, and Purina pet food labels. Where can I redeem these labels for money or coupons? Do you have connections with a pet food company, or know of someone successfully redeeming the labesl? Thank you in advance:)

Answer: Let folks know you collect these labels. Simplest, let pet owners you collect the empty food cans/containers. Advertise on your site. Create an electronic newsletter about your organization with your pet of the month. Create an online blog. Go to the local pet stores and ask to collect their empty cans of pet food.

Question: Why use grams for measurements on our American food labels? We don't use grams ever so isn't it misleading to use them on our food labels. Do you really know how many teaspoons of sugar you are really eating/drinking.

Answer: A couple of reasons. But probably the most compelling is that much of our food is sold in other countries.

Question: How many of you really read & completley undestand food labels and nutrition facts? How many of you really read & completely understands food labels and nutrition facts?Anyone agree with me most food labels and nutrition facts are misguiding and needs to improve it to understand more easily?

Answer: I understand it very clearly. We spent like, a month learning about it in school; how can I not understand it after that?

Question: Just curious about food labels on Food Network? I was just curious......why do some shows show the labels on food such as Barefoot Contessa and other shows have to make phony labels to hide the brand names such as 30 Minute Meals?

Answer: Not sure but off the bat I would suspect when the label is clearly visable the company has paid money for that product placement.

Question: What names do I look for on food labels to know if it contains MSG? I heard MSG goes by different names so what do I need to look for on food labels to avoid it?

Answer: hydrolyzed plant protein hydrolyzed vegetable protein Meat tenderizers monosodium glutamate Accent monopotassium glutamate Gelatin glutanic acid Calcium Caseinate aginomoto Yeast extract sodium caseinato wheat extract These are only a few hidden ones for you to find . There are also alot of products that cause free floating msg, we are not told about. http://www.carbohydrateaddicts.com/msg.html http://www.msgmyth.com/hidename.htm Check these out, they are good reading.

Question: What are some examples of food labels with doublespeak? If you are aware of the term, "doublespeak" what are some examples of food labels/products that use it?

Answer: chips that say no perservatives salt is the oldest perservative know to man!

Question: How to read the calorie listing on Food labels? I was just curious if the calories per serving on a food label include the calories that are stored as the carbohydrate, protein, and total fat listed on the label as well. I mean say it has 200 calories and 12 grams is carbohydrate, does that mean the 200 calories are including the calories of the 12 grams from the carbohydrate?

Answer: You got, there was a push a few years back to make this process easier. Here are a few links that should help: http://nutrition.about.com/od/recipesmenus/ss/learnlabels.htm http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/guide/how-to-read-food-labels good luck

Question: Could someone give me two food labels, one with a health claim? I need to find two food labels to compare for an assignment. I need one that has a health claim, but I don't have a label like that at home. I need an answer ASAP. Some either find a link or links that include two labels total or scan two food labels. A best answer will be awarded to the person who gets me two usable food labels first. Ready, set, go!

Answer: http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/brands/product_image.aspx?catID=50&itemID=7296 http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/brands/product_image.aspx?catID=23381&itemID=2671 http://www.nabiscoworld.com/Brands/ProductInformation.aspx?BrandKey=100calorie&Site=1&Site=1&Product=4400001379

Question: What does natural flavors mean under ingredients on food labels? I try to look at label especially when it is natural food. I find alot of things that state natural flavors. What is considered natural flavors? In my mind grape kool aid can be called a natural flavor even though it is not made from grapes. Can some one please shed some light on this for me? Thanks

Answer: A natural flavor is a flavor derived from the actual fruit (for example, natural grape flavor would be made from grapes) and an artificial flavor is chemically made (like in kool aid!). If it simply says "natural flavorings," it means flavoring that is not chemically made, but found in naturally found ingredients. It bothers me too how it doesn't say WHICH natural flavoring, but oh well :( nothing I can do.

Question: What are the words for "Wheat" when reading food labels. I am food shopping for someone with celiacs disease? I am having a friend over for dinner, and want to make sure I read the labels on the food I buy for them. Just wondering what is the list of hidden words for "Wheat" I can avoid. Barley Malt

Answer: First off, you very thoughtful! I am sure it means alot to your friend to know you're taking care like that! I have celiac disease, and I can tell you right now something does NOT have to say Gluten-Free on it to be safe. And it does NOT have to say "May Contain Wheat" to be safe. Focus on fresh ingredients. It is easier to make a regular meal you enjoy, that is rice or potato based then to try and do something fancy. We can eat loads of things that everyone else eats! Rice noodles are tricky to get right, so I would avoid them just because they take pratice to make right. Things to avoid: most pre-packaged flavoured things, soups, alot of cream based things, canned soups, check your spices, most soya sauces, alot of other sauces. Usually higher end brands may not have wheat in them while the store brand does. http://www.celiac.com/articles/182/1/Unsafe-Gluten-Free-Food-List-Unsafe-Ingredients/Page1.html Thats a good list of things to avoid. For dessert, I would suggest something you normally make with a cookie crumb base, and substitute gluten free cookies in. Ginger snaps make a really yummy crust for cheesecake and lemon meringue pie. We did both for easter. You don't have to stock up on fancy foods. Just make small subsitutions, if you're making something with gravy liquid stock usually is gluten free while almost all powder ones (like Bisto) have gluten in them. Instead of regular flour, use cornstarch or rice flour (rice flour tends to absorb more liquid than regular flour). Good luck, relax, and enjoy your dinner!