According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the current definition of “healthy” as a nutrient content claim on food packaging was established in 1994. It was based on the nutrition science and federal dietary guidelines at the time. The definition was focused on individual nutrients — such as saturated fat, total fat, cholesterol, and sodium, along with certain vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein — with maximum amounts for some and minimum amounts of others.
Since that time, the federal dietary guidelines and nutrition science behind them has evolved. Today, we have a greater understanding of dietary patterns and their effects on health, and we recognize that people tend to build their diets around foods, which are made up of a variety of nutrients, rather than just individual nutrients.
To be consistent with the latest nutrition science and federal dietary guidelines, the FDA is proposing an updated definition of the “healthy” claim for use on food packaging, including that:
A food has to contain a certain amount of a food group like fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy.
A food can’t contain too much saturated fat, sodium, or added sugars.
The proposed rule is also consistent with recent changes to the Nutrition Facts label. For example, the Nutrition Facts label must now declare added sugars to help people maintain healthy dietary practices.
How Would the Proposed “Healthy” Definition Work?
Here are a few results of the proposed new definition for the claim “healthy.”
Foods like salmon, avocados, and olive oil, which under the current regulations do not qualify for use of the “healthy” claim, would qualify under the proposed definition. Foods like sweetened cereals and yogurt that have more than the amount of added sugars permitted would no longer qualify.
And plain, non-carbonated water and plain, carbonated water could be labeled “healthy” as well. Under the current regulation, water cannot be labeled “healthy.”
As a shopper, all you would have to do is look for the claim “healthy” — or variations such as “healthier” and “healthiest” — on a food package to know you’re buying something that meets the FDA’s definition of “healthy.”