With today's health conscious consumer, food manufacturers are well aware that a primary concern of
public is health and eating healthy foods. Since marketing plays a huge role in product sales, marketing tactics paint a blurry picture designed to entice you, not educate you.In an effort to provide public with what they want, food manufacturers use unclear marketing statements like "Reduced Fat" and "98% Fat Free." Beware of products boasting these types of claims. Just because a product label claims "reduced fat" or "light" doesn't mean it's healthy, or low in fat.
There are several marketing descriptions companies use to coax you to purchase a lower fat version of a product. The best way to protect yourself and not fall prey to misleading marketing tactics is to learn how to properly read product labels and interpret common marketing catch phrases.
* Low Calorie - Fewer than 40 calories per serving. * Low Fat - 3 grams of fat or less per serving. * Low Cholesterol - 20 milligrams of cholesterol or less per serving, and 2 grams or less of saturated fat per serving. * Low Sodium - 140 milligrams or less per serving. * Very Low Sodium - 35 milligrams or less per serving. * Lean - Less than 10 grams of fat, 4.5 grams of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol per serving. * Extra Lean - Less than 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of saturated fat, and 95 milligrams of cholesterol per serving. * Fat Free - Less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving * Light - Half fat of regular version * Reduced Fat - 25% less fat than regular version
Whenever you are reading a label, important things to take into consideration for weight management are:
1. The number of calories per serving 2. The number of servings per container 3. Calories from fat 4. Calories per gram - For instance, whole milk has 9 fat calories per gram, 4 carbohydrate calories per gram, and 4 protein calories per gram.
