Most people never flip the packet over. And the food industry is counting on that.
"It says 'high protein' on the front, so it must be good for me."
Front-of-pack claims are marketing, not nutrition advice. A 2025 study examining nearly 600 food products found that health claims on packaging often don't reflect the product's actual nutritional value. If you want the truth, you need to read the back.
Here's how to do it in under 10 seconds.
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STEP 1: CHECK THE SERVING SIZE
This is where most people get caught out. Everything on the label is based on one serving, and the serving size is often much smaller than what you'd actually eat.
A "low calorie" cereal might show 150 calories per 30g serving. But if you pour yourself a normal bowl, you're probably eating 60 to 90g. That 150 calories just became 300 to 450. The label isn't lying. It's just not telling you the full story.
Always check: how many servings are in this packet, and how much am I actually eating?
STEP 2: LOOK AT THREE NUMBERS
You don't need to analyse every line. For fat loss, focus on three things:
Calories per serving. Then multiply by how many servings you'll actually eat.
Protein. Is this food contributing meaningfully to your daily target? If it claims to be "high protein" but has 5g per serving, that's marketing, not nutrition.
Added sugars. The FDA recommends keeping added sugars under 25g per day. Some "healthy" granola bars contain 15g in a single serving.
Everything else is secondary for most people. Get these three right and you're ahead of 90% of shoppers.
STEP 3: READ THE INGREDIENTS
Ingredients are listed by weight, highest first. If sugar (or one of its 50+ names: maltose, dextrose, high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, rice syrup) appears in the first three ingredients, the product is built on sugar regardless of what the front says.
A useful rule: if the ingredients list is longer than a short paragraph, or contains words you wouldn't find in a kitchen, think twice. That doesn't mean it's poison. But it usually means it's heavily processed.
THE MYTH: "IF IT SAYS HEALTHY, IT IS"
The word "natural" on a food label is essentially meaningless. It has no regulated definition. "Sugar-free" products often replace sugar with artificial sweeteners and added fats. "Low fat" products frequently compensate with extra sugar. "Multigrain" just means more than one grain, not whole grain.
A 2024 study found that over 60% of packaged foods carry some form of deceptive nutritional claim. The front of the packet is an advert. The back is where the facts are.
THE 5/20 RULE
If you want a quick shortcut, use the percent daily value column:
5% or less is low. You want this for saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars.
20% or more is high. You want this for fibre and protein.
It takes two seconds to scan and it instantly tells you whether a product is worth your money or not.
WHAT I TELL MY CLIENTS
Don't overcomplicate it. When you pick up a product, flip it over, check the calories and protein per serving you'll actually eat, glance at added sugars, and scan the first three ingredients. That's it. Takes less time than reading the front-of-pack claim that's trying to distract you.
The more you practice, the faster it gets. Within a week you'll be doing it without thinking. Within a month you'll be shocked at what you used to buy without checking.
See you next week,
Gabriel Nutrition Coach & Founder | gbMeals | The Fundamentals