How the Nutrition Label 5/20 Rule Can Help You Lose Weight and Lower Blood Pressure

• Most food products have a Nutrition Facts label.
• A good rule of thumb for utilizing this label is the 5/20 rule.
• Under this rule, less healthy nutrients should be kept at 5% DV or less.
• Healthier nutrients, however, should be 20% DV or greater.
• Following this guideline can help you make healthier choices about nutrition.

You’ve probably noticed a nutrition label on the back of the package or can for many of your favorite foods.

The Nutrition Facts label provides important information about the number of calories per serving.

It also states the amounts of various nutrients found in the food and their percent daily value (%DV).

But just what does all this mean, and how can you use it to be healthier and lose weight? One good rule of thumb is the 5/20 rule.

What is the 5/20 rule?

Marta Ferraz Valles , MA, RD, LD, an outpatient dietitian at The Institute for Digestive Health and Liver Disease at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, explained that the purpose of the 5/20 rules is to provide a general guide for selecting foods that are low in certain nutrients we don’t want, such as sodium, but high in others that we do want, like fiber, based on the %DV.

The %DV indicates the percentage of each nutrient that a serving of the food provides toward daily nutrient goals or limits based on eating a 2000-calorie diet, she added.

Valles further explained that if the %DV is less than or equal to 5%, the food is considered to be low in this nutrient. On the other hand, if the %DV is 20% or more, it is deemed to be high in this nutrient.

“For example, if a food label indicates that the food contains 2% DV of sodium [per serving], that means that the food is low in sodium,” she said.

Valles additionally noted the importance of serving size.

“If the serving size of the previous [sodium] example were 2 tablespoons and a person would eat 1 cup,” then that person would no longer be consuming low amounts of sodium, she remarked.

“Thus, the rule may be helpful as long as individuals eat the serving size indicated in the label,” said Valles.

How can the 5/20 rule help improve your health?

The 5/20 rule can help you make healthy food choices . For example, it can help you decrease the amount of foods you eat that are high in harmful nutrients like saturated fats and sodium while increasing the amount of beneficial ones like vitamins and fiber.

This can help reduce the risk of critical diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

When it comes to nutrients that you’ll want to limit, keep an eye on your sodium intake . This can help when it comes to blood pressure and your heart.

The 5/20 rule is also helpful if you are working to lose weight, as reducing your calorie intake is often an important component of weight management.

Additionally, the rule can help identify foods low in added sugars and saturated fats (5% or less of DV) and decrease calorie intake from unhealthy sources.

On the other side of the coin, the 5/20 rule can help you improve your intake of vital nutrients like vitamins, fiber, and minerals, which are good for overall health. You’ll want to choose foods with 20% or more DV of these beneficial nutrients.

Putting the 5/20 rule into action

“Generally, individuals want to choose products with less sodium, saturated fat, and added sugars, and with more dietary fiber , calcium, potassium , and iron,” advised Valles. “However, it is important to consult with a registered dietitian, as this does not apply for everyone.”

Valles cited irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) as one example of when you might be advised to alter this recommendation.

“For example, some people with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) may have more gastrointestinal symptoms, including cramping and diarrhea, if they have too much of certain types of fiber,” she said.

However, others with IBS are advised to increase their intake of certain fibers. So, if you have IBS or other gastrointestinal conditions, it’s important to talk to your doctor or registered dietitian about what types of fiber , and how much, might be best for symptom management.

Valles said that she also tells her patients to use the rule to compare food products so they can select which is the better choice. For example, when choosing between two tomato sauces, you could opt for the one with less sodium and added sugars.

She added, however, that it’s your overall diet that matters most. You might still be able to buy the tomato sauce with higher sodium and sugar if your overall diet is low in these less-desirable nutrients.

Valles concluded by saying that, although the 5/20 rule can be helpful, it’s also important to read the ingredients list.

“Some products may look very healthy when we look at the label (low sodium, low saturated fat, low added sugars, and high dietary fiber), but if we were to read the ingredient list, it may contain highly processed ingredients that we cannot pronounce,” she said.

“In this case, this may not be the healthiest choice, and people should discuss this with their registered dietitian,” said Valles.

Takeaway

The 5/20 rule is a guideline for using the Nutrition Facts label in order to make healthier choices.

Less healthy nutrients — like sodium, added sugar, and saturated fat — should generally be kept at or below 5% DV.

Healthier nutrients — like fiber, calcium, and potassium — should be consumed in larger amounts at or above 20% DV for most healthy adults.

Following this rule can help you lose weight , protect your heart, and generally be more healthy.

However, be aware that this is a general rule of thumb. Certain medical conditions, such as IBS, may require more or less of certain nutrients.