Nutrition Labels: Calling Their Bluff
With a potential 20% margin of error, nutrition labels aren’t as reliable as we think
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that a nutrition facts label be present on all packaged foods and beverages. The nutrition facts label provides the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for the fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, fiber, sugars, carbohydrates, and protein content in a particular food or beverage item. The RDA also provides the percentage of vitamin A, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, calcium, and iron.
The nutrition facts label is intended for you to make mindful and informed food choices. But what happens when that label isn’t accurate?
The FDA allows a 20% margin of error of information on nutrition labels. Studies have shown even greater errors in restaurant meals nutrition reporting.
That’s a pretty big margin for error. One study showed that nutrition labels underestimated calories in energy-dense snack foods by 8% and 18% in restaurant meals on average.
Why does this matter?
Theoretically, this means a 300-calorie bag of chips could contain up to 360 calories and not violate any regulations. This margin of error doesn’t just affect the number of calories. It…
