UC San Diego Athletic Performance
Nutrition Guide
Understanding Nutrition Labels
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Understanding
the Nutrition Facts Label is an important first step in making healthy food
choices. In the
The
top of the label tells you exactly how much of the product equals one serving
size. The line below tells how many
servings are in the container. Similar
food products now list similar portion sizes, which make nutritional
comparisons easy to make. Serving sizes are listed in common household and
metric measures. Although it is hard to
know how much food you are always getting, below are some guidelines.
A good rule of thumb:
*
2 ounces of dried spaghetti (yields 1 cup cooked): The diameter of a nickel
*
1 Cup of rice or pasta: A tennis ball or the size of your fist
*
12-ounce potato: A baseball
*
3 ounces of meat: A deck of playing cards or the palm of your hand
*
1 ounce of cheese: A pair of dice or the size of your thumb
The
amount of calories listed, are the amount of calories contained in ONE
SERVING. Remember, a product that lists
a low number of calories may have a small serving size.
Total calories are listed as well as calories from fat. This tells how many of the calories in one serving come from fat. For example, in a serving of this product, 120 of the 260 calories are from fat. To calculate percent calories from fat, divide calories from fat (120) by the total calories (260) per serving and multiply by 100. 120/260= .46 .46 x 100= 46% of the calories are from fat
It is best to have 30% or less of the calories from fat.
%
Daily Value shows how a food fits into the overall daily diet based on a daily
intake of 2,000 calories. Use these values as a guide to see if a food is high
or low in a nutrient and to compare similar food products.
Total Fat, Saturated Fat,
Trans-Fat
Total
fat and saturated fat are listed in grams per serving, the lower the saturated
fat, the better. Soon, most labels will
list all types of fat, including monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat and
trans-fat. Trans-fat acts like saturated
fat and is found to raise LDL (bad cholesterol). Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are
found to help reduce LDL, and even raise HDL (the good cholesterol). So, monounsaturated is the best type of fat,
followed by polyunsaturated.
Cholesterol and Sodium
The
milligrams of cholesterol and sodium are listed for those who need to watch these
numbers for health reasons, such as heart disease. Many processed foods are high in sodium, and
fatty foods high in cholesterol.
Total Carbohydrate
This
number is how many grams of carbohydrate are present in one serving. You will also see dietary fiber in grams and
sugar in grams. Some products also list
“other carbohydrates” which are considered to be sugar alcohols. These are often found in high protein
products and absorbed into the blood at a slower rate, but may cause digestion
problems.
Protein
This
shows how many grams of protein are in one serving.
Daily
Values Footnote
Some
labels provide the daily values, the recommended intake of the nutrients listed
for both a 2,000 and 2,500 calorie intake. Your daily values may be higher or
lower depending on your calorie intake.
· Calories 2,000 - 2,500
· Total Fat less than 65g - 80g
· Sat Fat less than 20g - 25g
· Cholesterol less than 300mg
· Sodium less than 2,400mg
· Total Carbohydrates 300g - 375g
· Dietary Fiber 25g- 30g
Calories per gram
· Fat 9
· Carbohydrate 4
· Protein 4
Some
labels provide the number of calories in one gram of fat, carbohydrate, and
protein.
Nutritional Facts Serving Size
· 1 cup (228g)
·
1 cup (8 ounces)
Supplied by UC San Diego Intercollegiate Athletics