Reading & Understanding Common Food Label Terms

Below is a list of commonly used nutrition terms and what they actually mean. Most of these terms are used as marketing ploys to entice a consumer to buy the product. The problem is that most people don’t understand what these terms actually mean. Remember, most of these terms mean that the product has been processed or manipulated to achieve these label claims, a product labeled as Fat-Free or Light doesn’t necessarily mean it is healthier.

• Low Calorie - Contains 40 calories or less per serving

• Calorie Free - Contains less than 5 calories per serving

• Low Cholesterol - Contains 20 mgs or less per serving and 2 grams or less of saturated fat

• Cholesterol Free - Contains less than 2 mgs of cholesterol per serving

• Low Fat - Contains less than 3 grams of fat per serving

• Reduced Fat - Contains at least 25% less fat per serving than the regular product

• Low Saturated Fat - Contains 1 gram or less of saturated fat per serving, and no more than 15% calories from saturated fat

• Saturated Fat Free - Contains less than 0.5 grams of saturated fat, and no more than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving

• Fat Free - Contains less than 0.5 grams of total fat per serving

• No Trans Fat - Contains less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving (does not mean completely free of trans fat)

• No Sugar - Contains less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving

• No Added Sugar - Contains no added sugar

• Low Sodium - Contains less than 140 milligrams of sodium per serving

• Very Low Sodium - Contains less than 35 milligrams of sodium per serving

• No Salt Added - Contains no added salt

• Sodium Free - Contains less than 5 milligrams of sodium per serving

• Light/Lite - Contains 50% less fat or sodium or 1/3 fewer calories than the regular product

• Gluten-Free - Contains less than 20 ppm of gluten

• Certified Gluten Free - Certified by an independent organization to contain less than 10 ppm of gluten per serving

• Organic - any food product that is certified organic by the USDA and therefore meets certain criteria for agricultural and animal husbandry practices. Organic means that the farming system used to grow the food avoids the use of man-made fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators, and livestock additives. (Nutritionally, there are not any meaningful differences between organic and conventional produce in terms of macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals)

• Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) - any organism in which their genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering. (Certified Organic Foods have does mean that they are not GMO’s)