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Nutrition Labelling
Nutrition labelling - it's the amount that counts
by: News Canada
Food labels are changing. A Nutrition Facts table will soon be
found on most food labels and it can tell you a lot about the food you buy.
NOTE: this article is accompanied by a short video, about 3 minutes in length. "Food For Thought: What's In It?". The link to the video is near the bottom of this article. |
Did you know?...
- Almost all pre-packaged foods must include a list of ingredients.
- Ingredients in a food are listed on the food label by weight
from most to least (the ingredient that is in the largest amount is listed first).
- The ingredient list is a source of information for
people with allergies or people who want to avoid certain ingredients or
verify the presence of an ingredient in a food.
- You can use the ingredient list together with the new Nutrition Facts
table, which has started to appear on many food labels, to
get a 'nutritional overview' of the food. Nutrition Facts list the Calories
and the amount of fat, saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, sodium,
carbohydrate, fibre, sugars, protein, calcium, iron and
vitamins A and C in a specific amount of food.
- Making healthy food choices can help reduce your risk of
nutrition-related chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart
disease. Checking the ingredient list and the Nutrition Facts table
can help you select foods to meet your needs.
Tips for using the Nutrition Facts:
- Remember - the amount of food in the Nutrition Facts is not a
recommended serving. Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating reminds
us that we all have different energy needs and
require different amounts of food.
- Nutrition Facts on different brands of the same type of food
may be based on different amounts of food. For example, one brand
of crackers may have nutrition information based on 8 crackers,
while another brand's is based on only 4 crackers. So check the
metric amount under the Nutrition Facts when comparing products.
- Not all foods are sold 'ready to eat'. Foods that require preparation,
such as cake mix baked with an egg, or breakfast cereal served with
milk, will have one column in Nutrition Facts providing nutrient values for
the food as sold, while another column will provide nutrient values
for the food "as prepared," with the extra egg or milk, for example.
You can get more information on nutrition labelling and Canada's Food
Guide by calling 1-800-O-Canada (1-800-622-6232) or
visiting:
here.
News Canada
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