Macronutrients Archives - jalpashethnutrition

Making healthy and informed food choices is essential for maintaining overall well-being. It’s important for us to know what’s in our food. It’s typically labeled on the package, but it can be confusing and hard to read. As the saying goes, “You are what you eat.” Understanding food labels is a crucial step in ensuring you’re nourishing your body with the right nutrients and avoiding hidden additives that may negatively impact your health. Let’s delve into the importance of deciphering food labels and using valuable tips on how to make informed choices to truly know what’s hiding in your food.

Food labeling

The Importance of Food Labels

Food labels are like a window into the contents of packaged foods, providing valuable information about their nutritional composition and ingredients. They empower you to make choices aligned with your dietary preferences and health goals if you know how to read it! By reading and understanding food labels, you can:

Control Nutrient Intake: Food labels list essential nutrients such as calories, fats, sugars, proteins, vitamins, and minerals. This information helps you maintain a balanced diet and manage calorie intake.
Avoid Allergens: If you have food allergies or sensitivities, labels can help you identify potential allergens and make safe choices.
Identify Hidden Ingredients: Labels reveal the presence of hidden ingredients like additives, artificial flavors, and colorings that may impact your health over time.
Compare Products: Food Labels allow you to compare different products and choose the one that best aligns with your dietary needs.
Make Informed Decisions: By understanding food labels, you can make informed decisions that contribute to your overall health and well-being.

Deciphering Food Labels: What to Look For

Serving Size: Begin by checking the serving size, as all nutritional information on the label is based on this. A serving size isn’t meant to tell you only to eat that amount. It is there to tell you the amount of food that applies to the nutrition. Be mindful of portion sizes to accurately assess your nutrient intake.
Calories and Macronutrients: Pay attention to the calorie count and the amounts of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins per serving. Choose foods that align with your dietary goals.
Nutrient Content: Look for key nutrients such as fiber, vitamins (like Vitamin A, C, and D), and minerals (like calcium and iron) that are beneficial for your health.
Ingredients List: The ingredients list provides insight into what’s actually in the food. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the first few ingredients make up the bulk of the product. Avoid items with lengthy lists of unfamiliar or overly processed ingredients.
Additives and Preservatives: Be wary of additives, artificial sweeteners, and preservatives. Some additives may have potential health risks, so opt for products with minimal or no additives.
Sodium and Sugar: Excessive sodium and added sugars can contribute to health issues. Choose products with lower sodium and sugar content.
Allergens: If you have allergies, carefully read the label for any potential allergens or cross-contamination warnings. Allergens are listed in bold under the ingredient list.
% Daily Value: This percentage helps you understand how a serving of the food contributes to your daily nutrient intake based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Aim for products with higher percentages of essential nutrients.

In general, you want to look for labels that are lower in saturated fat (specifically trans fat), added sugars, and sodium

Food labels

. All of these have been linked to heart disease and chronic obesity when consumed in high amounts. The items that you want more of are fiber, vitamin D, iron, calcium, and potassium. A diet high in fiber helps lower cholesterol, keeps blood glucose level, reduces calorie intake, and promotes a healthy digestive tract.

What’s Hidden?

There are several common food additives in food today. Research

has shown that many have detrimental health affects while others can actually be good for you? An example of a good one is Guar gum. It’s added to food to bind or thicken products. Guar gum is high in fiber and can help increase the feeling of fullness, so you intake less calories. An example of a detrimental additive is high fructose corn syrup. It sweetens food, but in high amounts has been linked to obesity and diabetes.

Misleading Food Labels

Marketing can be a powerful tool, especially when it comes to food. However, a good bit of labels that are promoted as “healthy” are just buzz words. Without knowing exactly what they mean, you could be buying a product thinking that it’s organic and healthy, when really it’s the opposite of what you need. Here are some common marketing food labels and what they really mean.

All Natural: there are no artificial ingredients or colors. It does not mean that the animal or product lives/was grown outdoors.
Humanely Raised: common on animal products, but there is no legal definition for it. It can be put on products even in places where animals are raised in confinement systems.
No Hormones or Steroids: It’s actually illegal to use hormones or steroids in all chicken products so whether it has this label or not, you’re getting the same product.
Fresh: this just means that the meant never went below 26 degrees. Which is not always a good thing!
Vegetarian Diet: Marketers can put this on a food label without it being true. There are no legal checks on farms to determine what is fed to the animals.
Cage Free: one of the biggest misleading labels! All chickens raised for meat are cage free. So don’t buy the more expensive package just because it has this label.

In a world saturated with packaged foods, being a conscious consumer is a powerful way to take control of your health. Learning how to read and interpret food labels empowers you to make informed choices, allowing you to understand exactly what’s hiding in your food. By paying attention to serving sizes, calories, nutrients, ingredients, and certifications, you can make dietary decisions that align with your well-being goals. Remember, the more you know about your food, the better equipped you are to nourish your body and enjoy a healthier, happier life.

For guidance on nutrition and what you need to do to manage your health, email Jalpa to set up a consultation!

Jalpa is a registered dietitian and nutritionist with a Master’s degree in Health & Nutrition from Brooklyn College, CUNY in New York. She also holds a Certificate of Training in Adult Weight Management through the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics, CDR.

Macronutrients

You may have heard of “macros” if you’ve looked into any sort of dieting. Counting macros has become very popular these last few years – and for good reason. But it can also be confusing and overwhelming if you don’t understand what macros really are.

In this blog, I will detail (in an easy way) exactly what macros are and why they are essential. Let’s make it make sense!

What are macronutrients?

There are three macronutrients and any food you can think of (any food in the world!) will be in one of these three categories. The three macros are protein, carbohydrates, and fats. You have more than likely heard of these. Each macro has an essential role for the body, and you’ll be happy to find out, you need all of them – even carbs!

What makes a food a certain macronutrient is what it breaks down to in the body. Protein breaks down into tiny chains of amino acids. Carbohydrates break down into glucose molecules, and fats break down into fatty acid molecules. Each of these tiny molecules has different functions in the body.

Protein and Its Role in the Body

Protein is mainly known for growing muscle and aiding recovery after exercise. But it has so many other important roles in the body, that you should be getting a good amount every day even if you don’t exercise.

Macronutrient- Protein Protein transports nutrients throughout the body, regulates fluid balance, and carries enzymes that are essential for bodily functions such as digestion and blood clotting. Important, right?! A huge role protein has is acting as a messenger for hormone function. Protein amino acids tell the body when to uptake sugar into the cell (insulin), and when to build more tissue, including bone (human growth hormone).

The sources listed below are mainly animal protein, and that is because that is where you will find all the essential amino acids that you have to get through your diet. If you’re a vegan or vegetarian, you can still get the protein you need through plants, you just have to mix and match in order to get all the amino acids needed.

Protein Sources:

Beef
Chicken
Turkey
Pork
Tofu
Seafood and Shellfish
Eggs
Egg Whites

Carbohydrates and Their Role as Macronutrient

A carb’s main purpose in the body is to create energy. Your body takes in carbs, breaks them down into glucose molecules, then sends those glucose molecules through the Krebs cycle to create ATP (which is energy). Ever feel sluggish in the afternoon? Try eating some fruit or whole wheat toast for an energy boost instead of drinking caffeine. You’ll be surprised at the energy it can give you.

The body can take fat or protein and turn it into energy, but it’s hard for the body to do. Carbs are the preferred source of fuel. In addition to creating energy, carbs also help spare protein so it can perform how it needs to. Fiber – a very healthy part of carbohydrates – is important for digestive health, controlling cholesterol levels, and keeping you full.

Macronutrient - Carbohydrates Carbohydrates often get a bad rap for making people gain weight. But that is only true if they are overconsumed. If you are an athlete or have a very active job such as a nurse or construction worker, carbs will fuel the energy you need to perform well. Focus on high fiber, unprocessed carbs for the best results.

Carbohydrate Sources:

Bread
Pasta
Rice
Oats
Cereal
Popcorn
Fruit
Vegetables
Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes
Juice
Sugar
Most drinks like tea and soda, unless it’s diet

Fat and Its Role as Macronutrient

Just like carbs, fat sometimes gets a bad rap for causing weight gain. Fat does not make you fat unless you overeat it. Fat is very calorie dense, but it’s not a bad thing as long as you’re aware. Fat is essential for brain health, cell protection, insulating organs, and storing backup energy. Fats also aid protein in hormone health. It’s what makes food taste good. Deep fry anything and it’s automatically going to be more scrumptious. That’s because fat is satiating and pleasing to the tongue. It’s also why it’s so easy to overeat. Anything packaged, processed, or fried is going to be higher in fat than its unprocessed counterpart. Consider using whole food fat sources rather than packaged or deep-fried food items to reap the health benefits fat can offer.

Fat Sources:

Oil
Butter
Nuts
Nut Butter
Seeds
Avocado

Macronutrient - Fat

One of the biggest misconceptions is that peanut butter is a protein source. Just because the label says it has protein in it, does not mean it’s a good protein source. It breaks down in the body as fat- it is a fat source. This is one reason it’s imperative to know what macronutrients are and what foods to eat to get them. Don’t let front labels do the work for you- turn it to the back and look at what the food item is actually made of. All nutrition labels have a protein, carb, and fat count on the back.

There are some foods that can fit into several of the categories such as dairy. Milk, yogurt, and cheese can have a good amount of all three – protein, carbs, and fat. All food offers different health benefits through the vitamins and minerals it has, so a varied diet should be considered.

Any diet that completely eliminates one or more macros – like all carbs or all fats – is not a healthy diet. It may allow you to drop some water weight quickly, but it will not aid in overall health or long-term fat loss.

Now that you know what macronutrients are, it’s time to learn exactly how much you need in order to fuel your body well. For that guidance on nutrition and what you need to do to manage your health, email Jalpa to set up a consultation!

Tag Archives: Macronutrients

Understanding Food Labels: What’s Hiding In Your Food?