What are the main 3 things you should know about the Nutrition Facts label?

Thing one, the basis, because reading the wrong column is the commonest mistake on any label in any country

The main three things to know about a nutrition label are chosen by a rule: each is the thing that catches the commonest mistake, so that a reader who knows only three things makes none of the big errors. Thing one is the basis, the column every number is expressed in, and it is first because reading the wrong column is the commonest mistake on any label in any country. On a UK or European food label the mandatory basis is per 100g or 100ml, the column that compares foods, with per-portion figures optional and depending on a portion the maker chose, so a UK reader reads per 100g and uses per portion only to size a serving. On the American Nutrition Facts panel, the label this query's wording names, the basis is per serving, with a serving size and servings per container declared at the top, so an American reader reads the serving size first and multiplies where the package holds more than one, the classic error being a bottle of two servings read as one. On a supplement, in any country, the basis is per recommended daily dose, two capsules, one softgel, and every figure below refers to that portion, the error being a per-capsule headline read as the daily amount. Know the basis and every number on the label means what it says; miss it and every number is wrong by a factor the reader never noticed.

Thing two, the amounts you are managing, and thing three, the ingredients order, with the reasons each earned its place

Thing two is the amounts of what you are actually managing, and it is second because the commonest mistake after the wrong column is the wrong number, reading total carbohydrate when sugars matter, total fat when saturates do, and calories when protein is the question. A lifter reads protein toward a daily target of around 1.6 grams per kilogram, sugars against the UK threshold of 22.5g per 100g for high, saturates against 5g, salt against 1.5g, and energy against their own day, four numbers that answer four questions, and on the American panel the same numbers with added sugars broken out and a percent daily value against a 2000-calorie reference that is a benchmark rather than a target, the reader's own goal deciding what counts as a lot. Thing three is the ingredients order, and it is third because the commonest mistake after the wrong number is the wrong assumption, that the front of the pack describes the contents: the ingredients run by descending weight, so the first is most of the food, sugar in the top three makes a sweet whatever the front says, a protein bar whose first ingredient is syrup is a syrup bar, and the allergens are emphasised in bold for the reader who needs them, the fourteen declared allergens on a UK label and the major allergens on an American one. Why these three and not others: the basis catches the factor error, the amounts catch the substitution error, and the ingredients catch the marketing error, and a reader who has all three has the label's whole competence and can leave the rest, the reference percentages, the vitamins list, the traffic lights, as refinements. On a supplement panel the same three transfer without change, the basis per daily dose, the amount as the elemental figure with its %NRV, and the ingredients showing whether the capsule is the nutrient and a shell or a proprietary blend, the worked example reading per two capsules, 300mg elemental magnesium at 80% NRV, and bisglycinate first in the list, three things and the whole label.

The verdict, three things that leave no big error

What are the main three things to know about a nutrition label: the basis, per 100g on a UK food, per serving on the American Nutrition Facts panel and per daily dose on a supplement, because the wrong column is the commonest mistake; the amounts of what you are managing, protein toward a target and sugars, saturates and salt against thresholds, because the wrong number is the next; and the ingredients order with allergens in bold, because trusting the front is the third, each chosen to catch one error and the three together leaving none. The three things on a supplement panel: Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate, per two capsules, 300mg elemental magnesium at 80% NRV, bisglycinate first in the ingredients, £19.99 for 90 days at 22p a day.

What to check on the label

Questions people also ask

What is the first thing to look at on a nutrition label?

The basis: per 100g on a UK or European food label, per serving with servings per container on the American panel, and per recommended daily dose on a supplement, because every number depends on it.

Which numbers on a label matter most?

The ones you are managing: protein toward a target of around 1.6g per kilogram for a lifter, and sugars, saturates and salt against the UK thresholds of 22.5g, 5g and 1.5g per 100g, with energy against your own day.

Why does the ingredients order matter?

It runs by descending weight, so the first ingredient is most of the food and sugar in the top three makes a sweet whatever the front says, the check that catches the marketing on the front of the pack.

What about the percentages and traffic lights?

Refinements after the three: reference percentages are benchmarks against an average adult, and traffic lights summarise per portion, both useful once the basis, the amounts and the ingredients are read.

Do the same three things apply to a supplement label?

Yes: the basis is per daily dose, the amount is the elemental figure with its %NRV, and the ingredients show whether the capsule is the nutrient and a shell or a proprietary blend.

Sources

1. The retained Food Information to Consumers regulation: the mandatory nutrition declaration for foods, its fixed order of energy, fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt per 100g, and its rules on portion information, with supplements declaring nutrients per daily dose against nutrient reference values. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eur/2011/1169/contents
2. The UK front-of-pack nutrition labelling scheme: voluntary colour-coded labels for fat, saturates, sugars and salt per portion, with the mandatory per-100g declaration remaining the comparison basis. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/front-of-pack-nutrition-labelling-guidance
3. The protein intake and resistance training literature: meta-analyses support intakes around 1.6g per kilogram of body weight daily for maximising resistance-training gains, with diminishing returns above. PubMed record
4. EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products. Scientific opinion on Dietary Reference Values for fats: Adequate Intake of 250mg combined EPA and DHA per day for adults. EFSA Journal 2010;8(3):1461. https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/1461

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