The Nutrition Facts Box
Every packaged food has a Nutrition Facts label — a little white box with black text, usually on the back or side. It tells you exactly what is inside the food!
The label has lots of numbers, but you only need to focus on three things at first:
1. SERVING SIZE: This is at the very top. It tells you how much of the food the rest of the numbers are about. For example: 'Serving size: 1 cup (228g)' or 'Serving size: 10 chips.'
Important: The whole box or bag is often MORE than one serving! A bag of chips might say 'Serving size: 15 chips' but the bag has 60 chips inside — that is 4 servings! All the nutrition numbers are for just ONE serving.
2. SUGAR: Look for 'Total Sugars' on the label. This tells you how many grams of sugar are in one serving. Under 5 grams is low, 5-10 is moderate, over 10 grams is a lot of sugar.
3. INGREDIENTS LIST: A separate list (usually below or near the Nutrition Facts) that names everything in the food. Ingredients are listed from MOST to LEAST. If sugar is first, the food is mostly sugar!