Part 1. What do labels mean?
Deciphering what's in the food your family eats can be complicated. With so many catchy phrases and gimmicks, it's easy to think you're eating healthy. Words like 'natural' and 'free range' might seem good, but what do they actually mean?
There is a push in recent years, to include more information on what is in our food. While some label terms like organic are regulated, descriptions like natural aren't clearly defined.
Lisa Lockman is picking up a box of organic fruits and vegetables. She says knowing what's in the food her family eats is important.
Lockman said, "I just think it's crucial that people know where their food comes from. There's a lot of not very healthy things in foods and reading labels is important."
There are many labels like 100% organic, natural, sustainable and local. What do all these labels mean?
Let's start with organic. There are four levels of organic.
Morrison Healthcare Dietician Lori Tolleson said, "100% organic means that it uses all nutrients, all foods, anything. So there's nothing genetically modified in there. It's all organic pesticide free. There's no contaminants. There's no additives."
A label that only says "organic" means it has at least 95% organic ingredients.
Tolleson said, "Additives, little things like that, that they use might not be certified organic meaning they could have genetically modified organisms in them, or additives."
Made with organic ingredients means 70% to 94.99% of its contents are certified organic.
Finally less than 70% organic ingredients.
Tolleson said, "My favorite label that doesn't mean much for me, when I'm looking at organic is anything that says 70% made with organic. That just means that they have organic ingredients in their food, but they're mixed with a whole bunch of things that are not organic."
Although the definitions vary, all these labels are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Many others aren't as clearly defined. Tolleson says many labels are used as a selling point.
Tolleson said, "Things like natural, sustainable, local, that doesn't mean that it's organic by any means. Sustainable means that it's been sustained through processing. Local means that it was bought local. It doesn't mean that it's necessarily better for you."
The USDA monitors only the natural processing of meat and eggs. There isn't a specific regulation or definition of other so-called natural foods. According to the Food and Drug Administration it is difficult to define a food product that is natural because the food has probably been processed and is no longer the product of the earth.
So what's the best label to look for?
Tolleson said, "It depends on what your health goal is. I think there's a balance between the two."
While knowing what's in your food can take time, Lockman says it's worth it.
Lockman said, "It's a blast. It's a fun journey and having healthy kids is a good thing."
Deciphering what's in the food your family eats can be complicated. With so many catchy phrases and gimmicks, it's easy to think you're eating healthy. Words like 'natural' and 'free range' might seem good, but what do they actually mean?
There is a push in recent years, to include more information on what is in our food. While some label terms like organic are regulated, descriptions like natural aren't clearly defined.
Lisa Lockman is picking up a box of organic fruits and vegetables. She says knowing what's in the food her family eats is important.
Lockman said, "I just think it's crucial that people know where their food comes from. There's a lot of not very healthy things in foods and reading labels is important."
There are many labels like 100% organic, natural, sustainable and local. What do all these labels mean?
Let's start with organic. There are four levels of organic.
Morrison Healthcare Dietician Lori Tolleson said, "100% organic means that it uses all nutrients, all foods, anything. So there's nothing genetically modified in there. It's all organic pesticide free. There's no contaminants. There's no additives."
A label that only says "organic" means it has at least 95% organic ingredients.
Tolleson said, "Additives, little things like that, that they use might not be certified organic meaning they could have genetically modified organisms in them, or additives."
Made with organic ingredients means 70% to 94.99% of its contents are certified organic.
Finally less than 70% organic ingredients.
Tolleson said, "My favorite label that doesn't mean much for me, when I'm looking at organic is anything that says 70% made with organic. That just means that they have organic ingredients in their food, but they're mixed with a whole bunch of things that are not organic."
Although the definitions vary, all these labels are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Many others aren't as clearly defined. Tolleson says many labels are used as a selling point.
Tolleson said, "Things like natural, sustainable, local, that doesn't mean that it's organic by any means. Sustainable means that it's been sustained through processing. Local means that it was bought local. It doesn't mean that it's necessarily better for you."
The USDA monitors only the natural processing of meat and eggs. There isn't a specific regulation or definition of other so-called natural foods. According to the Food and Drug Administration it is difficult to define a food product that is natural because the food has probably been processed and is no longer the product of the earth.
So what's the best label to look for?
Tolleson said, "It depends on what your health goal is. I think there's a balance between the two."
While knowing what's in your food can take time, Lockman says it's worth it.
Lockman said, "It's a blast. It's a fun journey and having healthy kids is a good thing."