Each time I teach a diabetes class, I bring a big bag of groceries with me. No, we don’t eat in class, but we use the food packages to learn more about label reading. Food labels have evolved and improved over the years, but I find that most people are still confused about the nutrition information provided. Grab a can or a box from your cabinet and see if you can locate the serving size information just under the “Nutrition Facts” heading.    
     The most common mistake made by label readers is the failure to locate this designated serving size. Many of the students in my classes don’t realize that all the nutrition information that follows is for only one serving of that food item. For instance,
my “light” microwave popcorn says that one serving is “3 cups popped” and there are 2 servings per bag. If the popcorn has 100 calories per serving, and I eat the whole bag by myself then I have eaten 200 calories worth of popcorn. The popcorn lists “Total Fat” as 3 grams, but this is for one serving, so I have eaten 6 grams of fat in my two servings.
     Plenty of people underestimate the number of calories they have eaten because they ate more than just one serving. So what is a typical serving?
     Most vegetables and fruits have serving sizes of one-half cup whether they are canned or frozen. Cereals like oatmeal, grits, or cream of wheat usually list the serving size as one-half cup after they are cooked and ready to eat.  Most dry breakfast cereals use a serving size of three-fourths of a cup and I know my husband’s bowl of cereal probably counts as 3 or 4 servings. Most dry cereals will give nutrition facts for the dry cereal only and then a separate column shows the nutritional content if you add a half-cup of skim milk.
      Milk, yogurt and soy milk typically list 8 ounces as one serving but one ice cream serving is one-half cup. My teenage son probably gets at least 4 servings in one bowl of his favorite ice cream. If his Cookies and Cream label lists 180 calories and 9 grams of fat per serving, then his bowl of ice cream contains 720 calories and 36 grams of fat! He is growing and he can use those calories but most of us should probably limit the portion to one small scoop. 
     One slice of bread or a two inch cornbread muffin is considered one serving for the diabetic diet. Read the label on one of those giant muffins and you might decide to share it with someone else or choose a smaller muffin.
     Some foods are advertised as “reduced fat” or “light” or “sugar free” but you can be fooled if you don’t read the fine print on the back of the package. The nutrition information provided on labels is only helpful if you consider the portion size when making food choices.