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Food labels in the United States display the percentage daily values of nutrients that a serving of a product provides, based on the recommended daily intake for a 2,000-calorie diet. Understanding this labeling can help consumers meet their recommended nutrient intake for optimal dietary health.
Daily Values are the amounts of nutrients such as fat, fiber, and calcium that should be consumed each day for maximum dietary health, based on the recommendations of nutrition experts. In the United States, each food label states the percentage daily values that are provided by a serving of that particular product. Understanding this labeling can help consumers meet the recommended intake for each nutrient and therefore eat healthily.
The recommended daily intake for each nutrient is based on a 2,000-calorie diet, a measure considered optimal for most adults. It is expressed in several different values, such as grams, milligrams, or international units, depending on the constitution of the nutrient in question. Nutrition experts have established daily values for a wide range of nutrients, from familiar dietary entities like fat and sodium to less recognizable ones like biotin and phosphorus. However, most food labeling lists only the recommendations for those nutrients that are of concern to the average consumer.
In the United States, food labels are designed to indicate the proportion of the recommended intake of each major nutrient that is provided by one serving of that food. This measurement is known as the percent daily value (%DV). In the Nutrition Facts column that appears on each label, the % DV for a particular nutrient is listed to the right of the amount of that nutrient contained in one serving of the product.
Let’s say, for example, a 1-cup serving of granola cereal contains 12 grams of fat. According to established recommendations, the total daily value of fat for a 2,000-calorie diet should be 65 grams or less. The 12 grams of fat contained in a serving of granola equals 18% of those 65 grams of fat; therefore, the %DV for one serving of this product is 18%.
Although meeting Daily Values may seem like a confusing process at first, food labeling regulators have taken steps to make understanding the nutritional content of each product relatively easy for consumers. For example, many labels contain a footnote below the Nutrition Facts column that lists the total daily values for key nutrients such as fat, carbohydrates, and cholesterol. With these numbers in hand, the consumer doesn’t need to worry about memorizing recommended intakes, and can easily see how the %DV in a product relates to the overall Daily Value for each nutrient. This labeling can also help you compare products and choose the ones that best meet your recommended daily values.
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