How to understand food labels | Eat For Health
The Nutrition information panel on a food label offers the simplest and easiest way to choose foods with less saturated fat, salt (sodium), added sugars and ...
serve
The Nutrition information panel on a food label offers the simplest and easiest way to choose foods with less saturated fat, salt (sodium), added sugars and kilojoules, and more fibre. It can also be used to decide how large one <anchor>serve</anchor> of a food group choice or discretionary food would be and whether it’s worth the kilojoules. This is particularly important if you are trying to lose weight.
What is a serve? | Eat For Health
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- [The guidelines](/ "This section contains pages with up-to-date advice about the amount and kinds of foods that we need.")  - [The guidelines](/guidelines/guidelines "This page contains information on Australian dietary guidelines including publications.")
  - [About the Australian dietary guidelines](/guidelines/about-australian-dietary-guidelines "This page contains information about the Australian dietary guidelines and guide to healthy eating.")
  - [Australian dietary guidelines 1 - 5](/guidelines/australian-dietary-guidelines-1-5 "This page lists and describes each of the 5 dietary guidelines.")
  - [Australian guide to healthy eating](/guidelines/australian-guide-healthy-eating "This page contains the Australian guide to healthy eating info-graphic.")
  - [Guideline development](/guidelines/guideline-development "This page contains information about how the Australian dietary guidelines were developed.")
  - [Media resources](/guidelines/media-resources "This page contains journalist briefings, sample meals plans and media releases.")
- [Food essentials](/ "This section contains pages with information about how to enjoy a variety of nutritious foods.")  - [Food essentials](/food-essentials "This page contains information about how to enjoy a variety of nutritious foods.")
  - [The five food groups](/food-essentials/five-food-groups "This page describes the recommendation to eat for the five food groups daily.")
  - [How much do we need each day](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day "This page contains information about the recommended amount of food.")
  - [Fat, salt, sugars and alcohol](/food-essentials/fat-salt-sugars-and-alcohol "This page contains information about Guideline 3 and foods to limit.")
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  - [Tips for eating well](/eating-well/tips-eating-well "This page contains information to help us choose foods for good health.")
  - [Healthy eating throughout all of life](/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life "This page contains information to help people of all ages make the best food and drink choices.")
  - [How to understand food labels](/eating-well/how-understand-food-labels "This page contains information about knowing what nutrition information to look for.")
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1. [Food essentials](/food-essentials)
2. [How much do we need each day?](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day)
3. What is a serve?


# What is a serve?

The _Australian dietary guidelines_ group foods together that share similar nutrients, this creates the [five food groups](/food-essentials/five-food-groups). For example milk, cheese and yogurt are all good sources of calcium, riboflavin, protein and B12.

Within each food group the _Australian dietary guidelines_ identifies the serve size of different foods that have roughly the same amount of key nutrients and kilojoules but that also reflect the amount of food commonly eaten in Australia, for example one piece of whole fruit or one slice of bread.

The ‘serve size’ is a set amount stated in the _Australian dietary guidelines_ and this doesn’t change. However, your ‘portion size’ will depend on how hungry you are and what type of meal or snack you are eating. For example, your ‘portion size’ may be two slices of bread in a sandwich for lunch, but only ½ slice of bread with a meal when you aren’t very hungry.

The serve size tables ( [Adults](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-adults), [children, adolescents and toddlers](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-children-adolescents-and-toddlers)) in the _Australian dietary guidelines_ is often not the same as your portion size. Portion size is the amount that you actually eat. For example, your ‘portion sizes’ at breakfast may be half a small tub of yoghurt on your ½ cup muesli. This would only be half a ‘serve’ of yoghurt, but two ‘serves’ of muesli. To see how big a serve is for different foods, take a look at the five food groups via the links below under 'getting portion size right'.

## Getting portion size right

It is important for weight control and essential for weight loss to think about your portion size. We tend to ignore our bodies signals of hunger and satiety (satisfaction) until we’ve eaten too much and are overfull.

Many people say they rarely feel hungry. Learn to recognise how it feels to be ‘peckish’, ‘hungry’, ‘ravenous’, or ‘satisfied’, ‘full’ and ‘stuffed’. Perhaps imagine your stomach as a petrol tank with a gauge and aim for somewhere between quarter and half full. When you eat, think first about how much you really need to feel satisfied and how far away the next meal or snack is.

Eat slowly, ‘mindfully’ without distractions like TV and give your body time to give you feedback. Put your cutlery down between mouthfuls when you’re chewing, or sip water in between swallows to slow your pace. Pace yourself with a ‘slow’ eater or even the clock. Concentrate on how a food looks, smells, tastes and feels in your mouth and stomach. By eating ‘mindfully’, you will enjoy food more and end up needing less to feel satisfied.

![Various plates and prep chef'd grains, fruits, vegetables and more. Various colours and portion sizes.](/sites/default/files/2022-03/145958977_47_food_selection_web.jpg)

Take a look at the five food groups and see how big a serve is for each of the five food groups:

- [vegetables](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes)
- [fruit](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes)
- [grain (cereal) foods, mostly wholegrain and/or high cereal fibre varieties](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes)
- [lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds, and legumes/beans](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes)
- [milk, yoghurt cheese and/or alternatives, mostly reduced fat](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes)

## How much water is needed?

There is no single recommended amount of water, as a person’s requirements at any one time will vary depending on climate, physical activity, and individual bodies. The following intakes can however be used as a general guide: about 4-5 cups of fluids a day for children up to 8 years, about 6-8 cups for adolescents, 8 cups for women (9 cups  in pregnancy and lactation) and about 10 cups for men. These amounts include fluid from all sources including all hot and cold drinks, but water is the best.

## How much unsaturated spreads and oils can I include in my diet?

A ‘serve’ of foods that provide unsaturated fat such as unsaturated margarine or oil, nuts and seeds is 10g (such as two teaspoons of margarine or oil). However, these foods are high in kilojoules so remember to always keep quantities small, especially if aiming to lose weight. Spread unsaturated margarine, nut pastes and avocado thinly. Use just 1 teaspoon (measured not poured) per person in cooking and think of avocado, seeds and nuts as sprinkles, garnishes or a snack in small quantities.

Follow the links below to find out how many serves you need to eat per day. To read the table, find your sex, then read across to find your age and keep reading across from left to right along each food group listed at the top of the table to find the number of serves you need from each food group.

### Minimum recommended average daily number of serves from each of the five food groups

- [Children, adolescents and toddlers](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-children-adolescents-and-toddlers)
- [Adults](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-adults)

Some days people might eat more serves from one food group, and other days less. However, over the week, the average number of serves from each food group should match the minimum recommended in the guidelines.

There are endless possibilities for how to combine these serves from the food groups in interesting and tasty ways. Click on the link below to see how you might spread them out over one day.

## Mixed foods

Mixed foods and meals can still be classified into the five food groups and ‘discretionary’ food choices, if you know what different foods they are made from. For example, a beef salad sandwich might be made up of two serves of bread, ½ a serve of meat, ½ a serve of tomato, ½ a serve of margarine and ¼ of a serve of salad vegetables.

![Sliced wholemeal bread sandwich consisting of spinach leaves, sliced tomato, white meat and cheese.](/sites/default/files/2022-03/141957815_8_healthy_sandwhich.jpg)

### Beef salad sandwich - serve breakdown

Serve breakdown of a beef salad sandwich, detailing the contributions of each ingredient to various food groups.Grain (Cereal) foodsVegetables legumes/beansFruitMilk yoghurt cheese and alternativesLean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds legume/beansUnsat spreads  and oils**Bread (2 slices)**2 serves**Roast Beef (30g)**1/2 serve**Tomato- 3 slices (40g)**1/2 serve**Lettuce and cucumber (1/4 cup)**1/2 serve**Poly Margarine**

**(1 teaspoon)**1/2 serve

## Meal planning

- [Sample meal plan for men](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/sample-meal-plan-men)
- [Sample meal plan for women](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/sample-meal-plan-women)
- [Sample meal plan for children](/sites/default/files/2022-08/adg_sample_meal_plan_child.pdf)

[Go to the National Health and Medical Research Council home page \| Australian Government](https://www.nhmrc.gov.au)

[Go to the Department of Health and Aged Care home page \| Australian Government](https://www.health.gov.au/)

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- [The guidelines](/ "This section contains pages with up-to-date advice about the amount and kinds of foods that we need.")  - [The guidelines](/guidelines/guidelines "This page contains information on Australian dietary guidelines including publications.")
  - [About the Australian dietary guidelines](/guidelines/about-australian-dietary-guidelines "This page contains information about the Australian dietary guidelines and guide to healthy eating.")
  - [Australian dietary guidelines 1 - 5](/guidelines/australian-dietary-guidelines-1-5 "This page lists and describes each of the 5 dietary guidelines.")
  - [Australian guide to healthy eating](/guidelines/australian-guide-healthy-eating "This page contains the Australian guide to healthy eating info-graphic.")
  - [Guideline development](/guidelines/guideline-development "This page contains information about how the Australian dietary guidelines were developed.")
  - [Media resources](/guidelines/media-resources "This page contains journalist briefings, sample meals plans and media releases.")
- [Food essentials](/ "This section contains pages with information about how to enjoy a variety of nutritious foods.")  - [Food essentials](/food-essentials "This page contains information about how to enjoy a variety of nutritious foods.")
  - [The five food groups](/food-essentials/five-food-groups "This page describes the recommendation to eat for the five food groups daily.")    - [Fruit](/food-essentials/five-food-groups/fruit "This page contains information about the recommended quantity and types of fruit.")
    - [Grain ( cereal ) foods, mostly wholegrain and / or high cereal fibre varieties](/food-essentials/five-food-groups/grain-cereal-foods-mostly-wholegrain-and-or-high-cereal-fibre "This page contains information about the recommended quantity and type of wholegrain and refined grain food.")
    - [Lean meat and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds and legumes/beans](/food-essentials/five-food-groups/lean-meat-and-poultry-fish-eggs-tofu-nuts-and-seeds-and "This page contains information about lean meat options and other protein based alternatives.")
    - [Milk, yoghurt, cheese and / or their alternatives ( mostly reduced fat )](/food-essentials/five-food-groups/milk-yoghurt-cheese-andor-their-alternatives-mostly-reduced-fat "This page contains information about dairy options in additional to their alternatives.")
    - [Vegetables and legumes / beans](/food-essentials/five-food-groups/vegetables-and-legumes-beans "This page contains information about the recommended quantity and types of vegetables and alternatives.")
  - [How much do we need each day](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day "This page contains information about the recommended amount of food.")    - [Putting it all together](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/putting-it-all-together "This page contains information describing how many serves are needed from each food group.")
    - [Recommended number of serves for adults](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-adults "This page contains information describing the nutrient and energy needed by all men and women of average height with sedentary to moderate activity levels.")
    - [Recommended number of serves for children, adolescents and toddlers](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/recommended-number-serves-children-adolescents-and-toddlers "This page contains information describing the nutrient and energy requirements for children, adolescents and toddlers.")
    - [Sample meal plan for men](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/sample-meal-plan-men "This page contains information describing a sample meal plan for a man aged 19-50 years of average height, healthy weight and light activity.")
    - [Sample meal plan for women](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/sample-meal-plan-women "This page contains information describing a sample meal plan for a woman aged 19-50 years of average height, healthy weight and light activity.")
    - [Serve sizes](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/serve-sizes "This page contains information describing the various food groups and what size each serving of them should be.")
    - [What is a serve?](/food-essentials/how-much-do-we-need-each-day/what-serve "This page contains information describing the various food groups and what size each serving of them should be.")
  - [Fat, salt, sugars and alcohol](/food-essentials/fat-salt-sugars-and-alcohol "This page contains information about Guideline 3 and foods to limit.")    - [Alcohol](/food-essentials/fat-salt-sugars-and-alcohol/alcohol "This page contains information about the risks of consuming too much alcohol.")
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    - [Sugars](/food-essentials/fat-salt-sugars-and-alcohol/sugars "This page contains information about how to avoid eating too much calorie dense sugar.")
  - [Discretionary food and drink choices](/food-essentials/discretionary-food-and-drink-choices "This page contains information about non-five-food-group foods.")
  - [Frequently Asked Questions](/food-essentials/frequently-asked-questions "This page contains answers to common nutritional questions.")
- [Eating well](/ "This section contains pages with information to assist with wise food and drink choices.")  - [Eating well](/eating-well "This page contains information to help choose foods and drinks more wisely")
  - [Tips for eating well](/eating-well/tips-eating-well "This page contains information to help us choose foods for good health.")    - [Choosing nutritious foods](/eating-well/tips-eating-well/choosing-nutritious-foods "This page contains information about how to address where you are now, how to limit discretionary foods and drinks.")
    - [How to add variety to your diet](/eating-well/tips-eating-well/how-add-variety-your-diet "This page contains information highlighting the importance of eating a wide variety of nutritious foods.")
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  - [Healthy eating throughout all of life](/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life "This page contains information to help people of all ages make the best food and drink choices.")    - [Healthy eating for infants, children and teenagers](/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life/healthy-eating-infants-children-and-teenagers "This page details 3 dietary guidelines for infants, child and teen healthy eating.")
    - [Healthy eating when you’re older](/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life/healthy-eating-when-you%27re-older "This page details 3 dietary guidelines for healthy eating when older.")
    - [Healthy eating when you’re pregnant or breastfeeding](/eating-well/healthy-eating-throughout-all-life/healthy-eating-when-you%27re-pregnant-or-breastfeeding "This page details 4 dietary guidelines for healthy eating when pregnant or breastfeeding.")
  - [How to understand food labels](/eating-well/how-understand-food-labels "This page contains information about knowing what nutrition information to look for.")    - [Food labels: what to look for](/eating-well/how-understand-food-labels/food-labels-what-look "This page contains a nutritional table example to help with understanding food labels.")
  - [Healthy recipes](/eating-well/healthy-recipes "This page contains meal and snack ideas and recipes.")    - [Recipe modification tips](/eating-well/healthy-recipes/recipe-modification-tips "This page describes how favourite and traditional recipes can be modified to include more fibre, more fruit and vegetables and less saturated fat, added sugars, added salt and less kilojoules.")
    - [How to modify a recipe to include more vegetables and reduce fat](/eating-well/healthy-recipes/how-modify-recipe-include-more-vegetables-and-reduce-fat "This page describes simple changes you can make to the basic lasagna recipe to increase the serves of vegetables, reduce the amount of fat, and to increase the fibre content.")
    - [Simple vegetarian recipes](/eating-well/healthy-recipes/simple-vegetarian-recipes "This page describes how to use meat alternatives to enjoy a greater variety of foods, eat a wider range of nutrients and make meals more interesting.")
    - [All year round fruit salad](/eating-well/healthy-recipes/all-year-round-fruit-salad)
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    - [Warm roasted vegetable salad](/eating-well/healthy-recipes/warm-roasted-vegetable-salad)
  - [Food safety](/eating-well/food-safety "This page contains information about Guideline 5 and preparing and storing food safely.")
- [Nutrition calculators](/ "This section contains various calculators to assist with daily nutritional requirements.")  - [Nutrition calculators](/eat-health-calculators "This section contains various calculators to assist with daily nutritional requirements.")
  - [Calculate your daily energy needs](/nutrition-calculators/daily-energy-requirements-calculator "This page contains a calculator to assist with measuring your daily energy needs.")
  - [Calculate your daily nutrient requirements](/nutrition-calculators/daily-nutrient-requirements-calculator "This page contains a calculator to assist with measuring your daily nutrient requirements.")
  - [Average recommended number of serves calculator](/nutrition-calculators/average-recommended-number-serves-calculator "This page contains a calculator to assist with measuring your recommended number of food servings.")
- [Nutrient Reference Values](/nutrient-reference-values "This section contains a significant amount of nutrients related information previously located at www.nrv.gov.au")  - [Introduction](/nutrient-reference-values/introduction "This section introduces the concepts behind nutrient reference values in Australia.")
  - [Nutrients](/nutrient-reference-values/nutrients "This page contains a list of the reviewed nutrients and further information about these nutrients.")
  - [Dietary energy](/nutrient-reference-values/nutrients/dietary-energy "Information about dietary energy")
  - [Chronic disease](/nutrient-reference-values/chronic-disease "This page contains information to optimise diets for lowering chronic disease risk.")    - [Introduction](/nutrient-reference-values/chronic-disease/introduction "Introductory information relating to sustenance and avoidance of deficiency disease.")
    - [Micronutrients & dietary fibre](/nutrient-reference-values/chronic-disease/micronutrients-dietary-fibre "Detailed information relating to micronutrients & dietary fibre, and antioxidant vitamins & minerals and more.")
    - [Macronutrient balance](/nutrient-reference-values/chronic-disease/macronutrient-balance "Information relating to proteins, fats and carbohydrates and their contribution to dietary energy intake.")
    - [Summary](/nutrient-reference-values/chronic-disease/summary "Information relating to chronic disease and a summary of how to reduce it.")
  - [Calculator](/nutrient-reference-values/nutrients-dietary-energy-calculator "This page contains the nutrients and dietary energy calculator.")
  - [Resources](/nutrient-reference-values/resources "A collection of resource materials for the Nutrient Reference Values.")    - [Glossary](/nutrient-reference-values/glossary "This page contains a list of terms and definitions used throughout this site.")
    - [NRV summary tables](/nutrient-reference-values/resources/nrv-summary-tables "This page contains the link to summary tables of nutrient reference values for energy, macronutrients and micronutrients.")