How to Read Nutrition Labels: Sugar, Sodium, Additives & Food Claims

Nutrition labels are useful, but they can be hard to interpret. In this episode, Dr. Hillary Lin walks through serving size, Percent Daily Value, added sugars, sodium, ingredient lists, food marketing claims, and common additives so you can make calmer, more informed choices — not panic over every ingredient.

Important: this episode discusses food labels, additives, sweeteners, pesticides, organic claims, MSG, emulsifiers, and hormones in food. Risk depends on dose, overall dietary pattern, medical context, and the strength of the evidence. Some research discussed here is observational or evolving, which means it can show associations without proving that one ingredient causes one disease. Use this as a label-reading guide, not individualized nutrition or medical advice.