How to Read Nutrition Labels Like a Pro: A Parent’s Guide!
How to read nutrition labels
Navigating the supermarket aisles can be overwhelming for a parent, especially when you're trying to choose healthy options for your family.
Food packaging is filled with marketing claims like "low-fat," "sugar-free," or "low-carb," but these often don’t reflect a product's true nutritional quality. Learning to read food labels is the best way to empower parents to make informed decisions. This involves focusing on the facts rather than hyped-up nutrient claims.
Here’s your step-by-step guide to understanding nutrition labels and making healthier choices for your family.
1. Understand the Ingredients List
The ingredients list is the first thing to look at when picking up a packaged product. This list is organized in descending order—the ingredient that weighs the most is listed first, and the smallest amounts are listed last. Therefore, if sugar or refined flour is listed in the first three ingredients, the product is likely not a nutritious choice.
Mandy’s tip: Choose products with a list of whole foods at the top, such as whole grains, seeds, nuts, legumes, fruits, and vegetables. The shorter the ingredient list, the better—fewer ingredients usually mean fewer processed additives.
2. Beware of Marketing Claims
Packaging can be deceiving. Labels like "low-fat," "sugar-free," "low-carb," and even the Health Star Rating system are often used to distract from unhealthy ingredients. These claims don’t always mean the product is suitable for your family:
"Low-fat": Can often mean that a product is loaded with sugar or artificial additives to compensate for the flavour or creamy texture lost by reducing fat.
"Sugar-free": May mean artificial sweeteners are used, which can still impact health negatively.
"Low-carb": This can mean higher fat content or reliance on artificial ingredients to compensate for taste.
Health Star Rating: This government rating can be misleading. Many processed foods with a high star rating still contain plenty of additives which may be harmful for children.
Mandy’s tip: Focus on the actual nutritional content by considering the ingredients used in a product, as well as the sugar and sodium content, and do not rely on the marketing spin.
3. Understand Sugar Levels
Many processed foods, even those marketed as healthy snacks, are packed with hidden sugars. When reading the nutrition panel, look for the "sugars" section under Carbohydrates. For everyday staples such as yoghurt, bread, crackers, cereal, and muesli bars, aim for foods that contain less than 5g of sugar per 100g, particularly for children's snacks.
Also, look out for “hidden” names of sugar substitutes like glucose syrup, fruit concentrate, maltose, sucrose or dextrose, which all add up. If a product states “no added sugar”, it refers explicitly to no added sugar or sweeteners added during the manufacturing process, such as table sugar (sucrose), high-fructose corn syrup, or other refined sugars. However, products can still contain naturally occurring sugars from ingredients like fruit, fruit juice, honey, or milk (lactose). These natural sugars are not considered "added" under food labelling laws, even though they contribute to the overall sugar content of the product.
Mandy’s tip: If sugar or any sweetener is listed in the first three ingredients, it's best to avoid it.
4. Interpret Sodium Levels
High sodium levels in processed foods can be harmful to children’s health, contributing to high blood pressure and future health problems. Around Look for the sodium content on the nutrition panel. Aim for products with less than 120mg of sodium per 100g.
Many snacks, sauces, and convenience foods have hidden salt, even if they don’t taste particularly salty. Be especially cautious with products marketed as “low-sodium” or “reduced salt”—while they may contain less sodium than their regular counterparts, they may still not be suitable for children.
Mandy’s tip: Always compare sodium levels across similar products to find the best option and use the per 100 gram column rather than per serve for crisps, popcorn and other kids’ savoury snacks..
5. Avoid These 5 Additives
Processed foods often contain additives to enhance flavour, preserve freshness, or improve texture. Many of these additives have been linked to negative health outcomes, particularly in children. Here are my top five additives to avoid in your kids’ food products.
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG - 621): Often found in savoury snacks, instant noodles, and processed meats, MSG can cause headaches, behavioural issues, and allergic reactions in sensitive individuals.
Artificial Colours: Ingredients like Tartrazine (Yellow 5 - 102) and Allura Red (Red 40 - 129) are linked to hyperactivity, behavioural problems, and allergic reactions. Avoid brightly coloured processed foods.
Propionates: This additive is commonly used in bread and wraps and is linked to behavioural problems, headaches and skin rashes and gut issues.
Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA - 320) and Butylated Hydroxytoluene (BHT - 321): These preservatives are found in processed snacks and cereals and may be carcinogenic, especially in large quantities.
Sodium Nitrite (250): Found in processed meats like ham, bacon, and sausages, sodium nitrite can form harmful compounds called nitrosamines, which are linked to cancer.
Mandy’s tip: If you can’t pronounce or recognise an ingredient, it’s probably something you don’t want in your child’s staple, everyday foods.
Do You Want to Learn More?
In a world filled with misleading marketing claims and hidden additives, it's crucial to arm yourself with the knowledge needed to make smarter food choices for your family. Understanding nutrition labels and recognizing the impact of preservatives like propionates, added sugars, and sodium can be the key to raising healthier, happier kids.
If you’re ready to dive deeper and gain practical tips on how to navigate the supermarket with confidence, I invite you to sign up for my oin my upcoming webinar: Smart Shopping with Mandy: Cut Through the Marketing Hype!
In this workshop, you’ll learn how to:
Spot hidden sugars and harmful additives
Choose the best products for your children’s health
Read labels like a pro
Make easy, nutritious swaps that fit your family's lifestyle
Take the guesswork out of your grocery shopping and join a community of parents committed to improving their children's health through better food choices. Sign up now and take the first step towards smarter, healthier shopping.