Food Labels Can Help You
Make Heart-Healthy Choices
The average American woman takes in too little fiber, calcium, and essential vitamins, and too much fat and sodium. Excess fat—especially saturated and trans fats—may raise a woman’s risk for heart disease. Too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure.
So do your heart a favor. Fix shortcomings in your diet by scanning both sides of food packages when you shop.
Upfront: Package Claims
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration enforces laws about which foods can use terms such as low-fat. So look for the following health claims:- A low-fat food contains 3 grams of fat or less per serving.
- The terms reduced sodium, reduced sugar, and reduced fat mean that a product has at least 25 percent less of these ingredients than the regular version.
- The term lean means that meat, poultry, or fish contains low amounts of fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.
- The claim “May reduce the risk of heart disease” goes only on foods low in saturated fat, total fat, and cholesterol.
On the Back: Nutrition Stats
To avoid getting bogged down in numbers and percentages, follow these simple rules:- Watch the serving size. If you eat two portions, double the calories and nutrients.
- Shoot for the highs and lows in percent daily value. It can show you if a food has a lot or a little of a particular nutrient. Foods that have more than a 20-percent daily value of a nutrient are high. Foods that have a five-percent daily value or less are low. Plan to eat more fiber, vitamin A, calcium, iron, and vitamin E. Eat less total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, and sodium.
