Confused about what to look for on food labels? You’re not alone. In the past, the common starting places were often calories and total fat. Yet, those two values reveal very little about a food’s nutrient content and overall health value.
So, to get some insight on where to start, we polled more than 20 dietitians and asked them what they look at first on a label when grocery shopping. Surprisingly, the responses tended to be one of two things.
The Ingredient List
The overwhelming response isn’t a number, but rather the ingredient list. Bailee Hart, RD, shares that she’s looking for “a fairly short list of natural, whole-food and recognizable ingredients.” She also doesn’t waste time: “If there’s a long list of unrecognizable ingredients, I put it back before looking any further at the label.”…