Healthy Eating: Understanding the Nutrition Facts Label

University of Florida Associate Professor Linda Bobroff shows a student how to read a nutrition label on a frozen dinner, Tuesday (10/14), as part of Smart Food Shopping for Teens, a program developed at UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. The program also teaches teens about enviroshopping, the practice of choosing products that are not overpackaged and that can be recycled. The program is aimed at teaching teens good shopping and eating habits before they form bad ones.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that most food packages have the Nutrition Facts label. This label contains information about nutrients in the food to help people make healthier food choices. Older adults can use the label to choose foods that provide required daily nutrients or fit with a diet plan to manage a disease or health condition. This 4-page fact sheet is a major revision that discusses the Nutrition Facts label, checking calories, limiting certain nutrients, % Daily Values, and consuming enough fiber, vitamin D, potassium, calcium, and iron. Written by Linda B. Bobroff and Karla P. Shelnutt, and published by the UF Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, revised May 2017.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy1127