A handful of studies have indicated that slightly more than half of Americans actually read the nutrition facts and ingredients lists on processed foods while at the grocery store. It is very unlikely that you are lucky enough to eat processed foods without reading ingredient labels while eating healthy, nutritious foods. With more than 35% of U.S. citizens at least 35 pounds above a healthy weight, I'm not surprised so few people actually read what's in their food.

Have you noticed the ingredients list on a food package has the smallest font in the history of printing? Food industry groups have pushed back against advocacy groups and the FDA, who are trying to increase the size and prominence of this important information. The food industry has a powerful lobby and they would rather you not pay much attention to the healthiness of their food or the chemicals they pump into it. They're much happier if you focus on their huge, bogus marketing claims plastered on the front.

The Nutrition Facts panel, which was designed and is required by the FDA, informs consumers about serving sizes and provides per serving information on calories, a variety of fats, sodium, cholesterol, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein. It also shows the serving size's percentage of said nutrient that is recommended for daily intake. Always check serving sizes to see if they are reasonable compared to what you are actually going to eat. 100 calories or 5g of fat may seem fair, but if you are going to eat seven servings, it's not a realistic measure and is misleading.

The percentages you see of fat, carbs, and proteins are relative to a 2,000 calorie diet. It does not tell the breakdown of these nutrients as a percentage of the whole item. A hotdog may show the fat content of 8g as 12% of the recommended daily value of fat intake, however, if you do the math, those 72 fat calories make up 65% of the total 110 calories. Very misleading if you don't understand what those numbers are measuring.

When looking at the actual ingredients list, the number of ingredients is often a good clue if an item is clean or not, although it' not a fool-proof method. You certainly want to eat as close to whole foods as possible, but if there are ten ingredients and they are all organic with no chemicals, it's cleaner than something with three ingredients that have preservatives or a sweetener. The ingredients are also listed in size order. The greatest quantity is listed first down to the smallest.

Based on the massive amounts of chemical additives in our food supply, there's a good chance you're not familiar with a wide variety of the ingredients in today's processed foods. I ask two questions when this happens. First, do I need my high school chemistry book? Second, would I use this if I was cooking from scratch? If you answer yes and no, respectively, it's probably best to avoid. I don't think Grandma ever tasted her gumbo or pasta sauce and said, "This could use some sodium benzoate, disodium chloride, and aspartame."

The marketing claims on the front of a packaged food are typically worthless. Although some of them are straightforward and have oversight, like USDA Organic or Non-GMO Verified, most others have significant issues. They are either meaningless like the "all natural" food claim, which can be filled with chemicals and additives or their is no oversight. If you want to eat healthy, it pays to forget these claims or understand their shortcomings, and read your food labels.