How to read a Nutrient Label

How do you read a nutrition label?  What should I look for and what should I not look for?

[Kwalk014]

I personally look at calories and macronutrient breakdown (fat, protein, and carbohydrates). Also, I will look at sugar content and aim for a low one because I like most of my carbs to be complex (wheats, oats, etc) rather than simple (sugar). The only simple sugars I like to get is from fruits immediately after I wake up or exercise.

Depending on your goals, you may want to adjust your macronutrient breakdown. When trying to bulk up I follow the 40:30:30 percentage rule for carbs:protein:fat and when trying to lean down I follow the 30:40:30 rule. If I want to maintain my weight I try to balance out at 33:33:33.

The main thing I try to avoid is HFCS (High fructose corn syrup) as it is made from 55% fructose and 45% glucose. Fructose is the less favorable of the two sugars for ingestion. Table sugar contains ~100% sucrose which breaks down into glucose/fructose so you are still getting almost 50/50 of those which is why I avoid simple sugars.