By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Take a walk down the supermarket aisle. Notice which foods say, “Healthy” on their labels. Did you know that products must meet specific standards set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to indicate on the label that a product is “healthy”?

While companies are not required to use the word “healthy,” they are not allowed to use it if a product does not meet FDA’s standards. The standards that are currently in use limit total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium but do not prevent a product with a lot of added sugars from being labeled “healthy.” In addition to having less than specified amounts of fat, sodium, saturated fat, and cholesterol, foods labeled “healthy” must also provide at least 10% of the Daily Value (DV) for one or more of the following nutrients: vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, iron, protein, and fiber.

The standards for use of “healthy” on a food label were developed in 1994 and are being reviewed. There are issues with the current standards. For example, currently, something like a highly sweetened breakfast cereal that has vitamin C added to it could be labeled “healthy.” Avocados, nuts, and seeds cannot be labeled “healthy” because of their total fat content.

What would you like to see as the basis for a “healthy” food? Must it be vegan? Should oils be labeled “healthy” if they are low in saturated fat? Should a food with any amount of added sugar be labeled “healthy”?

You can read a summary of FDA’s proposed criteria for allowing “healthy” on a food label  here.

The entire text of the proposed changes can be found here along with a link allowing you to submit your comments on the use of “healthy” on a food label.