New Year, New Food Label

Big changes are coming to food labels starting January 2020.  We’ve got tips to help break it all down.

REALITY CHECK FOR PORTIONS

• Serving sizes will be more comparable to what people are actually eating, so you can better assess your intake.

FORGET "CALORIES FROM FAT"

• Fat is necessary and certain types offer benefits, so there’s no reason to focus on calories from fat (thus, it’s no longer on labels). Check the saturated fat: limiting it can help reduce heart disease risk.
• Saturated fat goal: less than 20 grams per day

 
ADDED VERSUS NATURAL SUGAR

• Sugar naturally occurs in fruit and yogurt: most people don’t need to worry about this. However, limiting added sugars (like cane sugar and corn syrup) may reduce the risk of chronic diseases, like heart disease. The new label indicates how much sugar is added per serving.
•  Added sugar goal: less than 50 grams per day (about 12 teaspoons)

 (A 12-ounce can of soda has about 40 grams of added sugar.)
 
Label Reading Tip: check the Percent Daily Value (DV) – foods with more than 20% DV are considered high in that nutrient. 
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REFERENCES
2015 – 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. 8th Edition. 2015..
Briggs MA, Petersen KS, Kris-Etherton PM. Saturated Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease: Replacements for Saturated Fat to Reduce Cardiovascular Risk. Healthcare (Basel). 2017;5(2):29.
Changes to the Nutrition Facts Label. FDA. 2019.
Health Facts: Know Your Fats. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Toolkit for Health Professionals. 2008.
Mayne, S. Statement on New Guidance for the Declaration of Added Sugars on Food Labels for Single-Ingredient Sugars and Syrups and Certain Cranberry Products. FDA. 2019.

By Jennie Dockser, MGH Dietetic Intern