How to Read a Nutrition Label Without Being Misled

The nutrition panel is the most reliable information on a food package, and the part most people skip in favour of the marketing on the front.

Serving size first

Every number on the panel refers to one serving, and the serving is often smaller than what people actually eat. A drink bottle may contain two servings; a snack bag three. Multiply before comparing.

The per-100g column, where it exists, is more useful — it lets you compare two products directly without arithmetic.

Added sugar has many names

Total sugars includes sugars naturally present in milk and fruit as well as added ones. Where an added-sugars line exists, that is the one to watch.

In the ingredients list, added sugar appears as sucrose, glucose, fructose, dextrose, maltose, corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, invert sugar, molasses, honey, agave nectar, fruit juice concentrate and malt extract. Splitting sugar across several names pushes each one further down a list ordered by weight.

Sodium is usually the surprise

Most dietary sodium comes from processed food rather than the salt shaker — bread, sauces, cheese, processed meat, soups and ready meals especially. As a rough guide, above about 1.5g of salt per 100g is high; below about 0.3g per 100g is low.

Front-of-pack claims are loosely regulated

“Natural” has no consistent legal definition in most markets. “Made with whole grains” says nothing about quantity. “No added sugar” permits concentrated fruit juice. “Fat free” products often replace fat with sugar to restore taste.

The ingredients list and nutrition panel on the back are regulated far more tightly than anything on the front.

A habit that takes seconds

Read the first three ingredients and the per-100g figures for sugar, saturated fat, sodium and fibre. That captures most of what matters.

This article is general health information, not medical advice. Talk to a qualified doctor about your own situation.