When people talk about the calories in food, what do they mean? A calorie is a unit of measurement—but it doesn't measure weight or length. A calorie is a unit of energy. When you hear something contains 100 calories, it's a way of describing how much energy your body could get from eating or drinking it.

KidsHealth from Nemours, https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/calorie.html ×

This number on a food label indicates how much fat is in a single serving of a food. Limit total fat to less than 25% to 35% percent of the calories you consume each day. All fats have 9 calories per gram.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

Usually solid at room temperature, saturated fats are found in animal products such as meat and milk, as well as in coconut and palm oil. Saturated fat is often used in foods to prevent rancidity and off flavors. No more than 5% to 10% of your total daily calories should come from saturated fat.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

Trans fats are created when liquid fats such as vegetable oil are hydrogenated into more solid fats, such as margarine and shortening. Trans fats are linked with high LDL cholesterol, which can increase your risk of heart disease. Keep intake of trans fats as low as possible.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

Vital for building hormones and cell membranes. Your body makes most of the cholesterol it needs. Cholesterol is listed under the fat information on a nutrition label.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

While sodium (commonly called salt) is vital for healthy nerves and muscles, most of us get too much salt in our diet, often from processed foods. Read food labels to help keep your sodium intake to 2,300 milligrams a day or less. Persons 51 and older, African Americans, or people who have hypertension, diabetes or chronic kidney disease should limit sodium to 1500 milligrams daily.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

This number on a food label indicates how many grams of carbohydrates are in a single serving of a food.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

The part of plant foods that we cannot digest. Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds contain fiber. Fiber helps fill you up, can help lower cholesterol, and keeps you regular. You need at least 25 to 38 grams daily. To be considered high in fiber, a food must contain least 5 grams per serving.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

This section of the nutrition label lists added and natural sugars separately. Added sugars include sucrose, glucose, fructose, and corn and maple syrups. Natural sugars include lactose in milk and fructose in fruit. If you are concerned about your intake of sugar, be sure added sugars are not one of the first few items in a food's ingredients list.

WebMD, https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/definitions-glossary

Added sugars include sugars that are added during the processing of foods (such as sucrose or dextrose), foods packaged as sweeteners (such as table sugar), sugars from syrups and honey, and sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices. They do not include naturally occurring sugars that are found in milk, fruits, and vegetables. The Daily Value for added sugars is 50 grams per day based on a 2,000 calorie daily diet.

For most Americans, the main sources of added sugars are sugar-sweetened beverages, baked goods, desserts, and sweets.

US Food & Drug Administration, https://www.fda.gov/food/new-nutrition-facts-label/added-sugars-new-nutrition-facts-label

Protein in food labeling is the amount of Protein in 100g of the total component. From a nutritional point of view Protein quality labeling is associated with the number and types of amino acid found that can complement the body amino acid requirement and how much of the amino acid in the particular food is appropriate for body protein formation, which is associated with biological value, digestibility, efficiency ratio, and amino acid ration. Protein in nutrition plays a crucial role in almost all biological processes and amino acids are the building blocks of it. A large proportion of our cells, muscles and tissue is made up of amino acids, meaning they carry out many important bodily functions, such as giving cells their structure.

ResearchGate, https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_classifies_protein_in_the_context_of_nutrition_facts_labeling

Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble nutrient found in some foods. In the body, it acts as an antioxidant, helping to protect cells from the damage caused by free radicals. Free radicals are compounds formed when our bodies convert the food we eat into energy. People are also exposed to free radicals in the environment from cigarette smoke, air pollution, and ultraviolet light from the sun.

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminC-Consumer/

Niacin (also called vitamin B3) helps turn the food you eat into the energy you need. Niacin is important for the development and function of the cells in your body.

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Niacin-Consumer/

Vitamin B6 is a vitamin that is naturally present in many foods. The body needs vitamin B6 for more than 100 enzyme reactions involved in metabolism. Vitamin B6 is also involved in brain development during pregnancy and infancy as well as immune function.

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminB6-Consumer/

Vitamin B₁₂ is a nutrient that helps keep your body's blood and nerve cells healthy and helps make DNA, the genetic material in all of your cells. Vitamin B₁₂ also helps prevent megaloblastic anemia, a blood condition that makes people tired and weak.

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminB12-Consumer/

Pantothenic acid (also called vitamin B₅) helps turn the food you eat into the energy you need. It's important for many functions in the body, especially making and breaking down fats.

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/PantothenicAcid-Consumer/

Chloride is one of the most important electrolytes in the blood. It helps keep the amount of fluid inside and outside of your cells in balance. It also helps maintain proper blood volume, blood pressure, and pH of your body fluids.

https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/hw6323