Acidulants or acidifiers--Acids that have many uses in foods as flavor-enhancing agents, as preservatives to inhibit the growth of microorganisms, and as antioxidants to prevent discoloration or rancidity. In addition, they may be used to adjust the acidity in some foods.

Anticaking agents--Substances used to prevent powdered or granular foods from absorbing moisture and becoming lumpy. They help products like table salt and powdered sugar flow freely.

Antioxidants--Preservatives that prevent or delay discoloration in foods, such as cut potatoes and sliced apples. They also help keep oils and fats from turning rancid. Some examples are BHA, BHT, and propyl gallate.

Bran--Tough, outer coating of cereal grains (such as wheat, rye, and oats) that is separated in the refining process, but is included in whole-grain products. It may also be added to cereals and other grain products.

Calorie--A unit of measure of the amount of fuel or energy a food provides to the body. Food energy comes from three primary sources: fat, carbohydrates, and protein. (Alcohol also provides calories, but no other nutrients.) The nutrition label on packaged foods includes the number of calories in a specific serving of the product.

Carbohydrate--Sugars and starches that supply energy and help the body use fats efficiently. Carbohydrates are present in varying amounts in many foods. Foods with complex carbohydrates are recommended for a healthful diet--namely, whole-grain breads and cereals and dried peas and beans. Fruits contain mostly simple carbohydrates (sugar) and fiber.

Cholesterol--Fat-like substances found in foods of animal origin (meal, poultry, and dairy products), but not in foods from plants. Cholesterol is essential to body functions. However, the body can make what it needs, so the amount in some people's diets is often excessive, increasing the risk of heart disease.

Emulsifiers--Widely used in food processing, these agents stabilize fat and water mixtures so they will not separate. For example, in mayonnaise, egg yokes act as emulsifiers to keep the oil from separating from the acids (vinegar or lemon juice). Lecithin, derived from soybeans, acts as an emulsifier in such foods as chocolate and margarine.

Fats--A major source of energy, they also play a key role as carrier of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K). Fat is a constituent of most foods of plant and animal origin.

Fatty acids--The major components of fat. Fats in food are a mixture of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. Fats with a high proportion of saturated fatty acids are solid or nearly solid at room temperature and are found in larger amounts in foods of animal origin. Fats with mostly unsaturated fatty acids are liquid at room temperatures and may be monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Unsaturated fatty acids become more saturated by a process called hydrogenation. Olive oil and peanut oil are especially high in monounsaturated fatty acids. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are found in largest amounts in plant oils, such as safflower, sunflower, corn, soybean, and cottonseed oils.

Fiber--Provides bulk or roughage in the diet. Fiber is derived from such plant sources as cereal grain products, vegetables, fruits, seeds, and nuts. "Dietary fiber" is the amount left after digestion by the body.

Flavor enhancers--Help bring out the natural flavor of foods. Some examples are monosodium glutamate (MSG), disodium guanylate, and disodium inosinate.

Flavors--Naturally occurring and artificial agents used to give more taste to food. Flavoring agents include extracts from spices and herbs, as well as others that are man-made.

Grains--Hard seeds of cereal plants, such as wheat, rice, corn, and rye. Whole grains contain the entire seed of the plant.

Humectants--Chemicals such as glycerol, propylene glycol, and sorbitol that are added to foods to help retain moisture, fresh taste, and texture. Often used in candies, shredded coconut, and marshmallows.

Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated--Labeling terms that describe the process of adding hydrogen to an unsaturated fat to make it saturated; for example, oils may be hydrogenated to various degrees to make them suitable for use in products such as margarine. The more an oil is hydrogenated, the more fatty acids it contains.

Light or lite--Labeling language that suggests a food is lower in calories unless some other meaning is specified or obvious. A "lite" product intended to be useful in reducing body weight or calorie intake must satisfy FDA requirements for low- or reduced-calorie foods and provide full nutrition labeling information. Product labels and nutrition labeling should be checked carefully for calorie, fat, and sodium content. Since 1980, FDA has required food labeled as "low calorie" to contain no more than 40 calories in a serving and no more than 0.4 calories per gram. A "reduced calorie" food must be at least one-third lower in calorie content than the food to which it is compared. Foods naturally low in calories cannot use these terms. Foods labeled as "diet" or "dietetic" products must meet the requirements for low- or reduced-calorie foods or must be clearly described as being useful for a special dietary purpose other than for maintaining or reducing body weight.

Natural--A term that appears on many products, but has little meaning. Such labeling is objectionable, says FDA, when a product contains artificial ingredients, but is described as natural.

Niacin--A water-soluble B vitamin that is important for the health of all body cells. The body needs it to use oxygen to produce energy.

Preservatives--Substances that keep foods from spoiling, becoming rancid, or developing off-color flavors.

Refined flour--Type of flour produced by milling grains to a fine consistency. Refining removes bran, fiber, and some other nutrients. Enriched flour has iron and three B vitamins added to levels required by FDA.

Riboflavin--A water-soluble B vitamin that helps the body obtain energy from food and aids in growth, digestion, and in the proper functioning of the nervous system.

Sequestrants--Chemicals used to bind trace amounts of metal impurities that can cause food to become discolored or rancid. EDTA is an example.

Stabilizers and thickeners--Substances that give foods a smooth, uniform texture. They also protect foods from adverse conditions, such as wide temperature fluctuations and physical shock during distribution. The most common thickening agents are starches (cornstarch and wheat starch) and modified food starches. Other types include carrageenan, locust bean gum, agar-agar, sodium alginate, gelatin, and pectin.

Sugar-free/sugarless--Common table sugar, sucrose, fructose, and corn syrup are among the types of calorie-containing sweeteners found in foods. A food can be labeled sugar-free and still contain calories from sugar alcohols (xylitol, sorbitol, and mannitol), provided the basis for the claim is explained. Saccharin is a nonnutritive sweetener--that is, it has no calories. Aspartame has the same calories as sugar, but is so much sweeter that only small amounts are needed to provide the desired sweetness of the product; hence, its caloric contribution is almost negligible. Acesulfame K, a sweetener approved by FDA in 1988, also is non-caloric as it is not metabolized, or broken down for use by the body.

Sodium and Cholesterol claims
Health concerns about sodium and cholesterol have prompted a number of manufacturers to promote the low levels of those substances in their products. The claims are often made on the product labels. As a result, FDA has provided a set of descriptive terms to use for the claims.

The definitions are provided to ensure uniformity in their use by manufacturers, thus avoiding consumer confusion.

The sodium terms are established while the cholesterol language is still in the proposal stage, awaiting completion of the regulatory process.

Following are the sodium terms:

• sodium free--less than 5 milligrams of sodium per serving.
  
• very low sodium--35 milligrams or less per serving.
  
• reduced sodium--for foods in which the usual level of sodium has been reduced by at least 75%.
  
• unsalted or no salt added, or some equivalent--for foods once processed with salt but now produced without it. However, a food so labeled may in fact contain other forms of sodium. (Salt is 40% sodium and is the major source of sodium in the American diet, but at least 70 other sodium compounds are being used in foods today. Sodium is also present naturally in most foods.)

The proposed cholesterol terms are:

• cholesterol free--less than 2 milligrams per serving.
  
• low cholesterol--less than 20 milligrams per serving.
  
• cholesterol reduced--for products reformulated or processed to reduce cholesterol by 75% or more.

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