Food Labeling: Part 1

Understanding food labeling is important for maintaining any diet that is based on making choices among different foods on the basis of calories, fat content, and sodium. The strategy I’ve been using successfully is to log my consumption throughout the day using my diet spreadsheet and to let the results inform the choices I make. If I get to the end of the day and I am close to my self-imposed limits (1400 calories, less than 20% of those calories from fat, and less than 1500 mg sodium), I make informed decisions about what and whether to eat. It’s amazing how tasty and satisfying an orange can be when I’m near my daily limits.

Nutrient Content Descriptors and Claims

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition regulates what specific words can be used to describe nutrients for food products. The major nutrients covered are calories, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and sugars.

Free: Also means, zero, no, without, trivial source of, dietarily insignificant source of, and is based on the labeled serving size or on the regulated reference amount as are all the following terms. The amounts are as follows.

• Calories: Less than 5 cal for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.
• Total Fat: Less than 0.5 g for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.
• Saturated Fat: Less than 0.5 g saturated fat and less than 0.5 g trans fatty acids for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.
• Cholesterol: Less than 2 mg for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.
• Sodium: Less than 5 mg for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.
• Sugars: Less than 0.5 g for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label.

Low: Also means, low, little, few in reference to calories, contains a small amount of, low source of.

• Calories: 40 calories or less for the reference amount and serving size listed on the label and for 50 g (about 1.76 ounces) if the reference amount is small. For meals and main dishes, 120 calories or less per 100 grams (about 3.52 ounces).
• Total Fat: 3 g or less for the reference amount or per 50 g if the reference amount is small. For meals and main dishes, 3 g or less per 100 g and not more than 30% of calories from fat
• Saturated Fat: Less than 1 g for the reference amount 15% or less of calories from saturated fat. For meals and main dishes, 1 g or less per 100 g and less than 10% of calories from saturated fat.
• Cholesterol: 20 mg or less for the reference amount and for meals and main dishes, 20 mg or less per 100 grams.
• Sodium: 140 mg or less for the reference amount or per 50 g if the reference amount is small. For meals and main dishes, 140 mg or less per 100g
• Sugars: The term low is not defined for total sugars.

Reduced/Less: Also means lower (fewer in reference to calories). The term modified may also be used. Definitions for meals and main dishes are the same as for individual foods when assessed per 100 grams.

• Calories: At least 25% fewer calories for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.
• Total Fat: At least 25% less total fat for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.
• Saturated Fat: At least 25% less saturated fat for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.
• Cholesterol: At least 25% less cholesterol for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.
• Sodium: At least 25% less sodium for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.
• Sugars: At least 25% less sugar for the reference amount than an appropriate reference food that has not been reduced.

HeHere is my recap for yesterday.

Daily Dietary Recap-5/6/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1315.26	62.68 g	218.83 g	747.45 mg	18.46 g	12.57%

Ten Secrets of Weight Loss-Part 2

Continuing with my discourse about what I have learned so far on my quest to lose weight and lower my blood pressure, I will review the ten secrets here.

The Ten Secrets of My Weight Loss

1. Knowledge is power-the knowledge to make choices
2. Non-fat sour cream is my friend
3. Non-fat cream cheese is my friend
4. Fiber is filling
5. My palate took about three days to retrain to a low sodium diet
6. My dinner plate is a riot of color compared with what it used to be
7. Almost any recipe can be remodeled to accommodate my diet
8. Exercise accelerates the weight loss and blood pressure lowering process
9. Vinegar wakes up the flavors of food
10. A playful attitude about food and a willingness to experiment have been strong allies

One: Knowledge is power-the knowledge to make choices Foucault was right, knowledge is power. He demonstrated that power is transferred through dialogue according to the knowledge one has. Truth, in a Foucaultian sense is the acceptance by those involved in the discourse of the local truths pertinent to the discourse. Fortunately for me, the scale provides a more positivist measure of my progress.

My growing knowledge of the calorie, sodium, and fat content of foods and my ability to track my consumption gives me the power to make informed choices. I get to enjoy my food because I know that I am not violating my contract with myself to limit my food choices to 1400 calories per day, less than 20% of those calories from fat, and less than 1500 mg of sodium. If I am getting close to my upper limit for one or more of those, I choose to have a grapefruit rather than chocolate frozen yogurt. As much as I like frozen yogurt, I have discovered that I also like ruby red grapefruit and that is almost as satisfying.

I use my diet spreadsheet to keep me informed throughout the day and as a training mechanism so I can learn what foods I can eat and stay within my limits. One of the first things I learned was about serving size. I was surprised to find that a normal serving of meat was about 4 ounces and not 12 or 16 ounces. I had heard that nuts were very healthy but when I tried to incorporate them into my diet, I found that most of them contain about 14 grams of fat per serving so I choose to postpone them until I have reached my target weight. The more I learn, the more powerful and effective I become at making choices.

Two: Non-fat sour cream is my friend I have always liked sour cream, in sauces, on baked potatoes, and as a base for dips and dressings. I have learned to love non-fat sour cream. In fact, regular sour cream doesn’t taste good to me now. Non-fat sour cream is the base for my secret sauce, my seasoned sour cream, and a dip for my low-fat, low-sodium, low-calorie, homemade tortilla chips [Cut corn tortillas into six pieces and bake on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees turning once until crisp. The Mi Casa brand I use of white corn tortillas has only 40 calories per tortilla, six pieces, .33 g fat, and 28.5 mg sodium]. I don’t think I could continue without my non-fat sour cream.

Three: Non-fat cream cheese is my friend My major indulgence is non-fat cream cheese on a low-sodium Ritz cracker with marmalade or blueberry fruit spread. I also like to put cream cheese inside half of a whole wheat pita and slice it into 4 pieces. These non-damaging indulgences are where I turn when I feel like I want something indulgent.

I promised sample menus of what I eat in a typical day to maintain a 1400 calorie diet. Here is the first one.

Sample Daily Diet 1

Breakfast
I started the day by scrambling ½ C Eggbeaters with 1 T sweet onion, 2 chopped mushrooms, and ¼ C snow peas. I put this inside one-half whole wheat pita.

Snack
2 RyVita Crackers, and 4 Flat Earth Peach Mango Crisps

Lunch
Not-so-sloppy Joes and secret sauce in a half whole wheat pita

Snack
½ C fresh pineapple

Dinner
1 1/3 C Deluxe stir-fry vegetables (microwaved)
4 oz. Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1 T Secret Sauce
Large salad- Sweet Onion, lettuce mix, grape tomatoes, Ken's Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette

Dessert
1 C Yarnell Strawberry low-fat frozen yogurt

Late Night indulgence
1/2 WW Pita with 1 oz. Non-fat cream cheese

Total calories, 1381.14, Fat-20.81 g for 13.56% of my daily calories, and 1462 mg sodium

Here is my recap for yesterday.

Daily Dietary Recap-3/31/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1275	82.55 g	191.99 g	1054.47 mg	25.15 g	17.75%

Ten Secrets of Weigh Loss

Now that I’ve lost over thirty pounds, friends, coworkers, and even casual acquaintances are starting to notice and ask questions. Suddenly I am an expert on weight loss and blood pressure reduction without medication because I’ve been there, and I am doing it. Generally they start by saying they would like to lose some weight. I generally say, “OK, so lose it”. They then frequently tell me what their physician said. [Motive] I nod.

Then, they ask me what I’ve been doing. I tell them that I’ve been on a diet of less than 1400 calories per day, less than 20% of my calories from fat, and less than 1500 mg of sodium. I also tell them that I work out at the fitness center 4 days a week for about an hour and ten minutes. They then usually tell me that they: should, used to, haven’t been in a while, were thinking about starting, knew people who did, and so on. [Opportunity]

They usually ask me what I eat, and I tell them that I eat food that I like and make decisions so that I don’t exceed my daily goals. When they ask me exactly what I eat, I give them examples and the URL to my blog. It’s when I tell them about the spreadsheet that they either glaze over or ask me to email it to them. They usually conclude with, “I need somebody to tell me exactly what to eat; I can do that”, as they walk away.

I decided that I need to share my “diet secrets”, and some sample daily menus (I have everything I’ve eaten since January 3, 2997 logged). I’ll start with a preview of the ten things I’ve learned to this point. I'll elaborate on them, and toss in a few sample daily menus later.

The Ten Secrets of My Weight Loss

1. Knowledge is power-the power to make choices
2. Non-fat sour cream is my friend
3. Non-fat cream cheese is my friend
4. Fiber is filling
5. My palate took about three days to retrain to a low sodium diet
6. My dinner plate is a riot of color compared with what it used to be
7. Almost any recipe can be remodeled to accommodate my diet
8. Exercise accelerates the weight loss and blood pressure lowering process
9. Vinegar wakes up the flavors of food
10. A playful attitude about food and a willingness to experiment have been strong allies

That’s it to this point. I’m sure more truths will come along later.

Here’s my recap from yesterday.

Daily Dietary Recap-3/30/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1121	73.56 g	186.72 g	759 mg	15.6 g	12.52%

Diet Spreadsheets and Food Logging

Logging what I eat each day has helped me to keep track of where I am in the day and to make informed decisions about dietary choices. I can also see what effect a prospective choice will have on my daily goals, It lets me know whether that treat I am considering will throw me off track or not. I use a spreadsheet that I created using Microsoft Excel.

When I started, I just kept track of Calories, fat, sodium, fiber, and protein using the “Food Facts” listed on most food products. As I learned more, I added sugars, fiber, saturated fat, and cholesterol, and had the spreadsheet calculate calories from each. It also calculates the percentage of calories from each, and lets me know how far I have to go before I reach my goal maximums. My daily goals are: no more than 1400 Calories, no more than 1500 mg sodium, less than 300 mg cholesterol, less than 20% of calories from fat and less than 10% from saturated fat, and 30-38 grams fiber. The spreadsheet makes it fairly easy to keep track of all this.

USDA SR19

The United States Department of Agriculture maintains a website where you can access the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. It contains the composition of 7,293 raw, processed, and prepared foods by up to 140 nutrients. The latest release is 19 and it is updated in August of each year so, the SR 19 was released in August 2006. The database is available either online, or by download in Microsoft Access or ASCII format. The older version SR 17 is available for free download from NutriBase as the NutriBase Navigator. This offline software product allows you to search the database and select which nutrients are of interest and should be displayed.

Once you have searched either database or located food facts from food packages, it is easy to transfer the information to your spreadsheet. When you eat the food again, it’s easy to copy and paste from prior entries.

Recipes from Scratch

Obviously, recipes you cook at home from scratch aren’t found in the SR 19, or on any food facts. When I cook from scratch, I list the ingredients and their nutrients on the spreadsheet, total them and either weigh or measure the final products. I then decide what a serving size should be and the spreadsheet calculates the number of servings and divides the nutrients by this number. This allows me to perform a what-if analysis so I can see the effect of adding or changing one or more ingredients. I can immediately see the effect on each serving of adding a half teaspoon of salt to a recipe, for example. If I decide to eat a smaller portion, the spreadsheet calculates the revised nutrient make up for the new serving size and I can transfer these values to the daily log.

I’ve been told it takes a somewhat obsessive person to log and track their diet to this extent, but, it works for me. I like making informed dietary decisions and see the effect of my decisions.

Here is my recap from yesterday.

Daily Dietary Recap-3/1/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1052.86	80.77 g	149.52 g	977.81 mg	12.74 g	10.89%