Reading food labels can overwhelm us, especially when we rely on them to help us make the right decisions about food that will help our weight loss program. We can however learn to interpret food labels as part of our portion control eating plan. If you know what information to look for on pre-packaged food you can chose wisely and avoid being mislead.

Make sure that you understand the information provided about the content and number of each serving in your package. Don’t be fooled by details of fat in one serve if you plan to eat more than one at each sitting. For example, if there are three servings in one pack and each contain 7gm of fat, be sure to realize that 2 servings will contain 14 gm fat and if you eat the whole package, you will consume a staggering 21gm all at once. When you are really clear about how much fat each serving contains you can decide how much you will eat and how you will remove and store any remaining servings. Getting a clear idea of the content of each serving requires a careful look followed by sensible action. This is how portion control eating works best!

Label-reading doesn’t have to become an obsession but doing this the right way will assist you to make good use valuable information pre-packaged foods. The guidelines below will help you to read these food labels. By doing this, you’ll make more informed decisions about the best foods for you and the portion size you should eat.

There are some things like salt and sugar that you will want to diminish in your diet. Others like fiber will need to be increased. The checklist below provides some simple guidelines for label reading.

Always count the servings per container and check the content of each of these

Note the calories

% daily values are 5% or less = low / 20% or more = high

Search for low percentages of saturated and transfats

Limit salt (often referred to as sodium)

Eat plenty of fiber and protein

Reduce your sugar intake

Food labels should indicate the amount of saturated fats and transfats. Look for those foods that contain a low percentage of both of these. Keep a close eye out for foods where the salt (sodium) content or the sugar (sometimes referred to as glucose) content is low. Food labels on foods containing healthy fats will show ’polyunsaturated fats’ or ‘monounsaturated fats’. Whatever the fats, minimize your total fats to between 20%-35% of your daily calories.

Plan your portion control diet with the help of food labels. Details of the fat, sugar, protein, fiber and salt in this food is crucial for your decisions about what to eat and how much. Use this information to allow yourself the pleasure of eating some of every type of food as you lose weight. Don’t eliminate whole sections of the food pyramid in a dramatic and unbalanced eating regime.

This balanced eating program is a breath of fresh air after so many fad diets that can’t provide your body the nutrition it needs as you lose weight. Add this advice on interpreting labels to your portion control checklist.

Warm Regards

Rowena French

For The Team @MightyDigitalDownloads.com

Rowena French uses responsible portion control to successfully manage her own weight and her family’s health. Tired of dieting without success? Sign up to my free magazine to learn more about how to use portion control for healthy, permanent weight loss. If you haven’t already subscribed to my free product sample, watch my preview video for more information about the whole portion control package.

My friend Bianca and her parents moved to live near us after leaving Italy nearly twenty years ago.  We are the ‘sisters’ that our parents failed to provide and we have always shared our ups and downs. Recently, Bianca has been the happiest I can remember as an adult when she solved her long term ‘weight worry’ by learning about portion control – how to manage the intake of her food portions on a daily basis.

Her battle of the bulge came as something of a surprise to both her parents as neither of them has been overweight.  Bianca’s weight was within the normal range until she left home and took a teaching job interstate.  Then she started to eat out with new friends and found that larger portions of the food she loved the most like pasta, cheeses and good wine gradually added pound after dangerous pound.

She married Joe and between her job and her family was never able to lose weight for long, despite following every diet that came her way. In her unsuccessful pursuit of better health and the body shape she craved, she cut out fats, carbs, fiber and sugar at different times. Her focus was always on what she ate (or did not eat), never the size of her food portions.

Bianca says that she stumbled across how to eat smart and gain control of her weight. Previous diets had failed because each was too complex and they all left her feeling exhausted. To avoid this and extra shopping and cooking, she decided to eat the same nutritious food she prepared for her family every day just less of it.

But what food portions should she eat? Bianca knew that a balanced diet provides us with the nutrients essential for a healthy body. She knew that health authorities like the American Diabetes Association, The American Heart Association and the American Medical Association all agree that the best approach to weight loss is a balanced diet and she knew she provided food from the four major food groups for her family.

And what of the size food portions on her menu?  The answer was surprisingly simple for Bianca because she decided that her Italian dinner plates decorated with flowers on the lip and a blue circle inside this would determine the size of her food portions for lunch and dinner.  Unwittingly, the blue circle became the boundary for her portion control.

Joe and the boys had their regular meals at dinner and Bianca joined them but only ate the food portions she could fit inside the blue circle. She ate a healthy breakfast and she kept a stash of almonds, carrots and fruit for her mid morning and afternoon snacks but limited the size of these too. 

Bianca started to lose weight and kept doing this across most of last year until she finally discovered the healthy, trim body that had left home all those years ago.  As a result, she has altered her eating habits by taking control of her life and eating the European Way like her parents. She eats smaller food portions, indulges periodically, savors the taste of her food and enjoys meal times.

Bianca says this has been the most natural way she has ever lost weight and she is confident that she will keep it off forever. The benefits of portion control have her back in charge of her body again and her food portions can even include an occasional serving of tiramisu – her favorite dessert.  Now she has established healthy, life-long eating habits, Bianca can have her cake and eat it too!

Warm regards

Rowena French

For The Team

mightydigitaldownloads.com

Rowena French loves healthy living through weight loss and exercise. Is your weight out of control? Food Portions are the answer. My free gift helps you discover portion control so you can have your cake and eat it too! ‘Portion for Life’ tells you how.