Transcript Nutrition Labels

Nutrition Labeling
Nutrition information provided on food
labels
 Nutrition Facts
INGREDIENTS: Whole wheat, wheat
bran, sugar/glucose-fructose, salt, malt
(corn flour, malted barley), vitamins
(thiamine hydrochloride, pyridoxine
hydrochloride, folic acid, d-calcium
pantothenate), minerals (iron, zinc
oxide).
 Ingredient List
 Nutrition Claims “Good source of fibre”
 Health Claims
“A healthy diet…”
Nutrition Facts table
Amount of food:
Compare this to
the amount you
actually eat.
When comparing
items, look at the
weight/volume of
food (rather than
quantity).
Calories:
How much
energy you get
from 1 serving.
Percent Daily Value
(% DV):
Helps you see if a
specific amount of
food has a little or a
lot of the nutrient.
Get more of these nutrients (high % DV):
Fibre
Vitamin A
Vitamin C
Calcium
Iron
Get less of these nutrients (low % DV):
Fat, Saturated fat, Trans fat
Cholesterol
Sugars
Sodium
How to Compare: 3 steps
1) Look at the amounts of food
Cracker A
Cracker B
Cracker A has 9 crackers (23g). Cracker B has 4 crackers (20g).
Since both weights are similar, you can compare these Nutrition Facts.
Note:
You may still be able to compare products that
don’t have similar amounts of food.
Ex. You could compare the % DVs of a bagel
(90g) to the % DVs of 2 slices of bread (70g)
because you would most likely eat either
amount of food at one meal.
2) Read the % DVs
Cracker A
Cracker B
Looking at % DVs for saturated and trans fats, sodium and fibre:
Cracker A has 13% DV for sat & trans fats, 12% DV for sodium and 4% DV
for fibre.
Cracker B has 2% DV for sat & trans fats, 4% DV for sodium and 12% DV for
fibre.
3) Choose
In this case, Cracker B would be a better
choice if you are trying to eat less
saturated and trans fats, less sodium and
more fibre as part of a healthy lifestyle.
Ingredient List
Source of information for people with food
allergies or health concerns or for people
who avoid certain ingredients based on
their beliefs.
Ingredients are always listed in
descending order by weight with the item
in the greatest amount listed first. This can
help you choose between products.
Nutrition Claims
Highlights a feature of interest in the food,
such as “Good source of vitamin C.”
 When you want to
decrease the amount
of certain nutrients,
look for:
Free
•
•
none or hardly any of this nutrient
an example is “sodium free”
Low
•
•
a small amount
an example is “low fat”
•
at least 25% less of the nutrient
compared with a similar product
an example is “reduced in
Calories”
Reduce
d
Light
•
can be used on foods that are
reduced in fat or reduced in Calories
 When you want to
increase the amount
of certain nutrients,
look for:
•
Source
•
High or
good
source
•
•
Very high
•
or
excellen
•
t
source
contains a significant amount
of the nutrient
an example is “source of fibre”
contains a high amount of the
nutrient
an example is “high in vitamin
C”
contains a very high amount of
the nutrient
an example is “excellent
source of calcium”
Health Claims
Is a disease risk reduction claim
Example:
“a healthy diet rich in vegetables and fruit may
help reduce the risk of some types of cancer”
Federal government regulations specify
the criteria a food must meet before a
claim can be made, and the wording of the
claim to ensure that they are consistent
and not misleading.
To make a health claim about ...
calcium, vitamin D and regular physical activity,
and reduced risk of osteoporosis, the food
must be high (or very high) in calcium
may also be very high in vitamin D
cannot have more phosphorus than calcium
must be limited in alcohol]
must have more than 40 Calories if the food is not a
vegetable or a fruit
More information on Health Claims on Health Canada’s website:
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/label-etiquet/nutrition/cons/claimsreclam/table2-eng.php
General Health Claims
Generally developed by third parties or
corporations based on information that is
closely regulated by the federal
government.
While it is required that this information be
truthful and not misleading, consumers
should not rely solely on general health
claims to make informed food choices.
By third party organizations:
By corporations:
Note:
Because health claims are optional and only
highlight a few key nutrients or foods, it is still
important to refer to the Nutrition Facts table to
make food choices.
Canadian Nutrition Labeling Policy
 Nutrition labeling became mandatory for
most prepackaged foods on December
12, 2005.
 The new revised regulations will strengthen the
labelling requirements to:
Declare "hidden" food allergens, gluten sources, and
sulphites so it will be labelled in the list of ingredients or
in a statement that begins with "Contains:..”
The food allergen or gluten source will be written in
commonly used words such as ("milk" or "wheat")
 This will provide a clearer ingredient label so
that consumers can better avoid foods with
ingredient(s) which they are allergic or sensitive.
 Effective: August 4, 2012
Resources
1) Health Canada website
www.healthcanada.gc.ca/dailyvalue
2) Nutrition Labeling Education Centre
(Dietitians of Canada & Canadian Diabetes
Association)
http://www.healthyeatingisinstore.ca/
3) Eat Right Ontario
http://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/NutritionLabelling.
aspx