“Secrets, secrets are no fun…secrets, secrets can hurt someone.” Have you ever heard that little phrase before? I was a kid when I heard it for the first time and my kids know it as well. I say it especially when they are whispering to each other or friends to help reinforce that secrets can be hurtful. Now in the case of reading a nutritional label, food manufacturers have a silly way of selling their “secret” flavor to unbeknownst consumers, which, not all, but some can also do harm to the body.
I’m here to shed some light on this incredibly delicate, continually researched, and heavily regulated area of ingredients. As a Registered Dietitian looking at the ingredient panel of the food label can be a very daunting task, but one that I do in grocery stores, online, and even back at home when I’m consuming any processed food products. And more often than not, I tend to put the product back on the shelf. However, there are times when convenience does pay off and I need some on-the-go snacks or a quick meal. But knowing what to look for when reading a label when it comes to ingredients is the start to selecting the best foods to put into your body.
I’m not going to be addressing supplements as they have their own special requirements or “conventional foods” such as fresh fruits and vegetables, as those aren’t required to post the nutritional facts. Read on to learn how to expand your toolbox of reading a nutritional label.
Food manufacturers are required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Department of Health and Human Services, to put all ingredients on the label. There are a lot of rules and each guideline can be amended. For this post, I’ll be referencing Title 21, Chapter 1, Subchapter B, link here. You can then link out to other “parts” for additional guideline support, as well as a historical timeline of amendments. We are going to stick pretty close to this section “101.4 Food; designation of ingredients.”
Ingredients are listed at the bottom of the food label in descending order of “predominance” or weight (aka amount of ingredient) per serving. Meaning, the largest amount is listed first, then next largest, and so forth. This descending order of ingredients rule also applied to any ingredients that have (parentheses) following it, as that ingredient may have a blend of other ingredients. Potential ingredients with parentheses may be blended fats/oils, flours, leavening agents, yeast nutrients, firming agents, seafood and fish proteins.
For example:
“vegetable oil shortening (contains one or more of the following: cottonseed oil, palm oil, soybean oil)”
“leavening (baking soda, monocalcium phosphate, and calcium carbonate)”.
“yeast nutrients (calcium sulfate and ammonium phosphate)”
“dough conditioners (L-cysteine, ammonium sulfate)”
Firming agents : e.g., “(e.g., salts of calcium and other safe and suitable salts in canned vegetables)
Fish protein e.g., “fish protein (contains one or more of the following: Pollock, cod, and/or pacific whiting)”.
“For ingredients that are less than 2%, then the label will list these ingredients at the end of the list with “an appropriate quantifying statement, e.g., “Contains percent or less of ____” or “Less than percent of ____.”
I felt like Alice in Wonderland falling down the rabbit hole
As I started reading more about ingredients per the FDA, because I want to be very clear with the rules and regulations and not confuse you, I felt like Alice in Wonderland and became pretty deep in the rabbit hole. Ultimately, if you can pronounce the ingredient and know exactly what it is, then you can decide if it’s worthy enough to be in your body. Spoiler alert, natural flavoring, artificial flavoring, spices, extracts, and possibly the words inside parentheses can mean a LOT more than those “common” words just mentioned. There isn’t a lot of room on a food label, and some of the nomenclature is quite long. There are entire businesses dedicated to just developing and creating flavors, colors, blends, etc. from cosmetics to sodas, and it’s not one ingredient but potentially several.
More than 10 ingredients, is it worthy enough to be in your body?
So, when reading the ingredients on a food label, if it has more than 10 ingredients and you don’t know what it is, you may want to pause and see if this food product aligns with your health goals and if it’s going to help you achieve them.
For those still interested in knowing more about the ingredients, find a comfy spot and let’s go! What I found most interesting was this section (b) “The name of an ingredient shall be a specific name and not a collective (generic) name, except that: (1) spices, flavoring, colorings and chemical preservatives shall be declared according to the provisions of § 101.22.” Meaning, there are certain “ingredients” that can fall into those collective categories (spices, natural/artificial flavorings, synthetics, and natural/artificial colorings) and they do NOT need to state the specifics. There are a few more guidelines for chemical preservatives such as it needs to state how that ingredient behaves as such i.e. “preservative, retard spoilage, mold inhibitor, to help protect flavor, or to promote color retention.
For example, “INGREDIENTS: Dried Bananas, Sugar, Salt, and Ascorbic Acid to Promote Color Retention”
To sum up everything and not take you down the rabbit hole (if you want to jump down, link here as well as read on), if the ingredients say spices, natural flavorings, artificial flavorings, natural colorings, and/or artificial colorings your guess is as good as mine with what it actually is. I am pretty cautious when it comes to these terms so welcome to one tunnel of the rabbit hole!
Hello white rabbit...
Here's a picture of Provisions 101.22
ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR OR ARTIFICIAL FLAVORING
If you click on that link of “provisions,” 101.22, you’ll discover the definitions of artificial flavor or artificial flavoring; natural flavor or natural flavoring, spice; artificial color or artificial coloring, and chemical preservative, there is also another link that includes synthetic flavoring substances and adjuvants. The approved artificial flavors has 740 substances (there are two sections §§ 172.515(b) and 182.60 of this chapter). It could be a combination of one or more in the first section and then the second section has “generally safe substances.”
This was one of the longest approved artificial flavoring substances safe for human consumption, β-Bourbonene; 1,2,3,3a,3bβ,4,5,6,6aβ,6bα-deca-hydro-lα-isopropyl-3aa-methyl-6-methylene-cyclobuta [1,2:3,4] dicyclopentene. Per the Chemical Book online it possess a herbal woody floral balsamic and is manufactured in China. Another substance: Rhodinyl butyrate, per National Library of Medicine it appears to be a rose odor/additive. As you can see, there are many substances that may be in your food and termed as “artificial flavor or artificial flavoring.”
SPICES
Spices are much easier to understand and there are 83 approved spices, with their corresponding botanical scientific name such as cumin, lavender, thyme, etc. You can see the list here. However, the FDA also includes another section here under “spices” which also includes “natural flavoring”…confusing, I know. Spice and natural flavoring fall under part of the same section of “approved” substances. This section includes substances that are added directly to food and are generally safe such as acetic acid, enzymes like Bromelain, calcium carbonate, and so forth. I feel like I’m back in chemistry class when I read these substances. I will say, many of these substances I have seen their direct name like “locust bean gum” in the ingredient section, which I appreciate, and it is generally accepted to be stated as such, but it’s under the provision of an “exception” so one could question if the product does use anything here while using the term "spice" or “natural flavoring,” instead.
NATURAL FLAVORS OR NATURAL FLAVORING
Natural flavors are basically a natural plant’s essence or extracts such as essential oils, extracts from apricot or peach kernel, musk or oils. The lists are as follows: §§ 182.10, 182.20, 182.40, and 182.50 and part 184 of this chapter, and the substances listed in § 172.510 of this chapter.
COLORING
Coloring, definition link here, is a little tricky, but basically it should state whatever ingredient is acting as a color to be said as such. For specifics regarding artificial coloring, check this link out. It's also important to note, there are certified colors, which will be listed by "specific or abbreviated names “FD&C Red No. 40” or “Red 40.” Non-certified colors: List as “artificial color,” “artificial coloring,” or by their specific common or usual names such as “caramel coloring” and “colored with beet juice.” I will say, different countries have different guidelines as well as bans on ingredients, including colors.
TRACE AMOUNTS
Trace amounts of ingredients usually will not be included in the ingredient list if it has “no functional or technical effect in the finished product,” meaning that if it does not provide nutrient(s) or other effects like coloring, preservative, flavoring, etc. it will not be listed. But it is noted, that any major food allergens (proteins derived from: milk, egg, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, and soybeans) “must be declared” as trace amounts. You may find this below the actual ingredient list, as it shows below.
For example, INGREDIENTS: Bittersweet Chocolate (Sugar, Chocolate Liquor, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin [An Emulsifier], Vanilla Extract), Roasted Arabian Coffee, Confectioners Glaze.
Contains Soy. May Contain Traces of Wheat, Milk, Eggs, Peanuts, and Tree Nuts
MAJOR FOOD ALLERGENS
The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA) (or Title II of Public Law 108-282) is a law that was enacted in August 2004, link here. This, is a good thing as all regulated packaged foods have to label the top 8 major allergens, which again are proteins derived from one of these: milk, egg, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts and soybeans. 90% of food allergies account to these major allergens, but more than 160 foods have been identified from the FDA to cause allergies or sensitivities in people. If an ingredient has one of the top eight allergens, you will find which allergen in parentheses behind the ingredient.
Sample of possible examples for labeling food allergens per FDA:
MAJOR TREE NUTS
For those with Major Tree Nuts sensitivities or allergens, here is a nice list:
You can use the link here, the list above was last updated 5/2023
Decoding the Ingredient section of a Nutritional Label
So, now that we have gone through some pretty heavy material and navigated these many lists, guidelines, and definitions, there is a LOT to know. If you understand this secret language and possibly have a hand as a budding food scientist or chemist, it may be easy to comprehend, but for those that aren’t, this may be more foreign. I have had my fair share of google searches standing in a grocery aisle to only put the product back on the shelf. I recommend and encourage you to select foods that are in their simplest form like rice, beans, fruits, vegetables, etc. But again, this is why we are here, to understand how to decode the ingredients of a food label.
When an ingredient says “spices, flavoring (natural and artificial), coloring (natural and artificial), chemical preservative” it may be more than what it is saying. There are over 1,000 other substances that it could be, these are deemed safe for general consumption per the FDA, and these substances are constantly being amended. Some of these substances may have trace amounts of the top food allergens and more sensitives are being discovered. I encourage you to check out your own pantry and look at your food labels.
Ask yourself these questions:
What ingredients do you read?
Do you understand all of them?
Do these ingredients align with your health goals?
Will this food support your wellness journey?
To me, the ingredient section of the nutritional label is going to answer my biggest question …Is this food going to be in my grocery cart? It is also the most deceiving part of the food label as you may have found with all those links above. And supporting my kids’ lesson of secrets are no fun, they can harm someone…In short, I look for the simplest of ingredient decks and anything over 10 ingredients…Proceed with caution. 🛑
References:
US Food & Drug Administration (www.fda.gov)
Code of Federal Regulations (www.ecfr.gov)
Chemical Book (www.chemicalbook.com)
National Library of Medicine (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/)
The tools, resources and information do not provide medical advice. It is intended for informational purposes only, not advice or guarantee of outcome. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Never ignore professional medical advice in seeking treatment because of something you have read on Health-Crush Website or the links connected to the website, downloaded resources and/or educational material, or misinterpreted the information/context/educational sessions. If you think you may have a medical emergency, immediately call your doctor or dial 911. Health Crush and its members are not responsible for errors and omissions in reporting or explanation. No individuals, including those under our active care, should use the information, resources or tools contained within to self-diagnosis or self-treat any health-related condition. Health Crush gives no assurance or warranty regarding the accuracy, timeliness or applicability or the content.