If you are trying to eat more nutritiously, you need to pay attention to the food labels. You should read them very carefully because you might miss something hidden in the ingredients list. Today you are going to learn about some of the nutrition decoding information that is very important. Keep this information with you when you go shopping if you need to. You shouldn’t need a huge health manual just to understand what you are consuming. Here is some important and basic information you must have.
The Serving Size
The serving size is one of the first things you might look at when you are choosing foods in the grocery store. Do you get 1 or 4 servings per package? If you see that the serving size is more than just one per package, make sure that you are multiplying all the other numbers on the label by the number of servings. This will help you to know exactly what you are getting.
The Calories
You should also know how many calories are in the food you are choosing. The calories will be how much energy you are going to get from the serving. You need to choose foods that are higher in nutrient value and not high in calories.
The Fat and Cholesterol
The fat is where many people get messed up. There are three different types of fat that you should know about. When you see unsaturated fat, that is the type of fat that is healthy for your heart. When you see saturated fat, this is the type of fat you should only have in smaller numbers. If you have this type of fat in higher numbers, it could cause heart disease or other heart issues. This type of fat is found in most meats and dairy products. Trans fat should be left out as much as you possibly can. This is a type of fat that is made by humans and research shows it causes many cardiovascular and heart diseases. The cholesterol levels should be paid attention to as well. You should keep this as little as possible.
Carbohydrates
You also need to pay attention to the amount of carbohydrates on the label as well. This is the number 1 ways that you can get energy. You want to avoid processed carbs because those are the ones that will burned off very quickly. Whole-grain carbs have more fiber and so they stay in your system for longer.
This is the basic and simplest way to understand the nutrition labels. Keep this nutrition decoding information with you and remember it when you go shopping from now on. It is important what you put in your body and what you don’t.
