The History of Food Labels Food labels were regulated in 1994. Before then, food companies could print their products’ nutritional information basically anywhere they wanted to (and often in really small print).

The Food and Drug Administration required companies to format the information in a structured way and to include helpful information on the label -- in a set size and organized manner. These regulations required both the ingredients and nutritional information to be provided along with a food label of a standard size and shape (a rectangle) labeled “Nutrition Facts”. In this box, you will find nutritional information listed in order of importance. In 1994, the FDA and U.S. Department of Agriculture required that: * labels provide information on how the food fits into an overall daily diet * labels will include information on the amount per serving of saturated fat, cholesterol, dietary fiber, and other nutrients of health concern to today's consumers * terms such as light," "fat-free," and "low-calorie" meet government definitions * be consistent across product lines to make comparison shopping easier * expressed in common measures * reflect amounts people actually eat (Good Reading) Serving Sizes Serving size is the first item listed on a nutrition label.

Serving sizes are standardized, recommended snack or meal size portions. Depending on the type of food, the serving size may be indicated by cup measure or number, such as one cup of cereal or one slice of bread. Some foods, like salad dressing, can be represented by small measures like tablespoons. This information is followed by the metric amount (e.g., grams) the serving contains. Serving size is the most important part of the food label. It is integral to using the additional information on the label to lose weight. Whether you count calories, fat grams, or carbs, it is impossible to accurately track them without knowing and measuring serving sizes.

Weight gain is something that isn't easy to do and you probably know this already. I know first hand because it is something I have to do every day. I am an ectomorph by genetics, which is the "skinny body type" and the one with the fast metabolism which makes gaining so hard for guys like me. The key to weight gain is to do everything BIG. You have to eat big, to lift big, to get big. Say that over and over again in your head until you fully understand it. A lot of people think weightlifting is the key to gaining weight, and I won't argue, it is an extremely important part. BUT, there is another thing that is just as important when it comes to how to gain weight, and that is your diet.

So, to put it as simply as possible, there are 5 simple steps to how to gain weight, and here they are:

1) Count how many calories you eat in a normal day. Don't change anything, just eat like you normally would and count how many calories you consumed. This is an extremely important step, so try to be as exact as possible. Also, weigh yourself.

2) Starting the day after you counted calories, eat 500 calories MORE then you normally do. So, lets pretend that the day you counted calories you counted 2000. For the rest of the week, you would now eat 2500 calories a day. Instead of eating 3 big meals a day or eating all day all the time, spread those calories out over 5-6 smaller meals. Eat one meal every 2 and a half to 3 hours. To get big, you have to eat big! Remember that.

3) Weightlifting! Get in the gym and lift! This is another important step to how to gain weight, so make sure you are doing it correctly.

4) At the end of that week, weigh yourself. You'll notice you're gaining just after one week! Now, don't expect to see a 10lb increase. Gaining anymore then 1 or 2 pounds a week is unhealthy and means you're putting on way to much fat. So look for 1 or 2 pound gains at the end of the week. Don't sound like much? You can be gaining 5-8 pounds a month!

5) Heres an important one. At some point, you will stop seeing weight gain. At this point, you will have to eat even more. So, when you stop gaining for at least 2 weeks, it means it is time to start eating an extra 250 calories a day. Every time you see you haven't gained weight for at least 2 weeks, add an extra 250 calories.

The regulations dealing with how foods are labled is ambiguous and hard to regulate. Low Fat is a common term, used to increase the sales of foods in today's market. Almost everything you see has the words "Low Fat" or "Lower Fat" on their label. But what does this mean? Low compared to what, a tub of lard?

Read the labels carefully. inspect each product that you buy for this reason, what is low fat to a manufacturer can be very high to your diet.

As a rule of thumb, try finding foods that are less than 2 grams of fat per serving.

The word "Lower Fat" can be very misleading. All this statement means is that the food is lower fat than it was at one time. If it had 100 grams of fat originally and it now has 90 grams of fat it is the "New" Lower fat version but it could still outrageously high in fat! This is very common and misleading. Look at the total fat and the kinds of fat as well.

To sum it all up, just because it says low fat doesn't really mean it is, check the label to see if it is Low Fat or Full of It!