Zero Calories? Read the Serving Size First
By Derrick Inglut
“Zero calories” looks absolute. On a nutrition label, it can reflect a very small serving and permitted rounding.
That does not make the whole product a scandal. It does mean you should check the serving size before deciding what the number tells you.
Read the amount beside the number
FDA labeling guidance allows amounts below five calories per serving to be expressed as zero. With cooking spray, the labeled serving may be a very short spray. A much longer application uses more product.
The practical question is how the label’s serving compares with your actual use. If you are trying to understand the amount of oil in your cooking, measuring a little ordinary oil can sometimes be easier than estimating spray time.
Compare like with like
Look at the same quantity or the portion you will realistically use. A tiny serving of one product and a tablespoon of another do not make a fair comparison.
Check the current package rather than assuming a brand’s ingredients or serving definition stayed the same since an old article was written.
Separate sweetener safety from weight-loss promises
The FDA considers approved sweeteners safe under their approved conditions of use. That is not a claim that every sweetened product improves your diet or causes weight loss.
Some people also have specific restrictions. For example, people with phenylketonuria, or PKU, should avoid or restrict aspartame according to their care plan because it contains phenylalanine.
Choose products in the context of your preferences, tolerance, and overall eating pattern. You do not have to treat either sugar or a substitute as a complete nutrition strategy.
Spend attention where it helps
Learning the label is useful. Repeatedly worrying about a negligible ingredient while ignoring the rest of your meals usually is not.
If measuring food starts creating distress, step back and seek appropriate support rather than adding more rules. For a simpler meal-planning discussion, see dietary fats and portions.
If you want help deciding which food habits deserve your attention, explore my personal training and nutrition planning in Washington, DC. We can connect practical meal choices with your workouts and progress, without making every label a source of confusion.
Adapted and updated from “Pam Cooking Spray, NutraSweet, Equal and Splenda – EXPOSED! (Kinda, Sorta),” originally published in The Southwester, November 2009, p. 6.
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