How to read food labels

Take a look at the nutrition information panel (NIP) on a product you’ve bought. Now look at the amount of total carbohydrates in the food per serve and check your serving size is the same as the recommended serving size shown on the pack. If you eat more or less, use the label to calculate how many carbs are in your serving size.

For example, with the NIP from a cereal packet below, if you ate the recommended serve of 45g with ½ cup skim milk this would provide 26g carbs. If, however, you ate

80g of cereal you could use the per 100g value and multiply this by 0.8 (80g/100g) which would give you 35g carbs, then, simply add the right carbs for your serving of milk.

What about sugars?

When you look at a food label, you will see a value for ‘total’ carbohydrate as well as ‘sugars’. The total carb value includes the sugars and is the total amount of carbohydrates that will affect your BGLs, not just the sugars.

The value for sugars on the NIP includes both added sugars and those naturally occurring such as the lactose in milk products and fructose found in fruit. Since these natural sugars come along with other nutrients, and have a lower glycaemic index (GI), meaning they are slowly digested and absorbed, they are not necessarily to be avoided if you have diabetes. However, if a product is high in added sugars, it is best left on the shelf – you can often work this out from viewing the ingredients list.

The glycaemic index and carb counting

It’s easy to get confused about the difference between glycaemic index (GI) and the amount of carbs in foods.

GI is a measure of the speed at which carbohydrate foods are digested and absorbed, and, therefore, how quickly or slowly they raise your BGLs.

Knowing the GI can help you to make better carb choices, but the amount of carbs you eat still matters. For example, if you choose a low-GI food but eat it in large quantities it may still cause your BGLs to spike. Using carb counting along with GI is the best way to manage post-meal BGLs.

If you are new to the idea of counting carbs, use the recipes in this issue as a way of familiarising yourself with carb measures and, just as importantly, portion size. Our recipes are designed to ensure you eat the correct amount of carbohydrates over the course of a day – as well as being an easy guide to carb exchanges.