If a single serving of a product has 80 calories, 10 percent of your daily value of fat and 4 grams of fiber, is it healthy? Even if you disregard line after line of overwhelming nutritional claims, deciphering food labels can feel like a difficult math problem.
Making nutritional information easier to identify is a step forward, but there is still a gap in understanding how to make nutritious choices. A solution is offered through a program known as the Guiding Stars.
Guiding Stars uses an algorithm based on a food’s nutrient density per 100 calories. This determines the Guiding Stars 0, 1, 2, 3 rating. Meaning, foods are individually rated against a strict standard, not each other.
The Guiding Stars program is grounded in evidence-based nutrition science — its Scientific Advisory Panel consults the current dietary guidelines and recommendations of leading national and international health organizations, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Academy of Sciences and the World Health Organization.
Guiding Stars can be found in supermarkets, on your iPhone, in food service settings in corporate cafeterias, college dining halls, school cafeterias, hospitals and as part of innovative health and wellness programs. As you go through each aisle of the store or navigate through your cafeteria, the Guiding Stars program can help you identify more nutritious choices. Guiding Stars is not intended to tell you what to buy, but rather point you toward foods that have more vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, whole grains –and less fats, cholesterol, sugar and sodium.
For more information visit www.guidingstars.com and you can follow them on Twitter or Facebook for tips.
