According to research at Tufts University, Americans are spending $13 billion per year on foods labeled as “natural.”

The word “natural” sounds like it might mean that the food is better for you but that isn’t necessarily the case according to Tammy Roberts, nutrition and health education specialist with University of Missouri Extension.

“The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets standards for the nutrition information and health claims that can be made on a food label. Claims made on food labels are to be truthful and not misleading. Still, it’s easy for some claims to be confusing,” said Roberts.

The three terms that many people are confused about are “natural,” “healthy” and “organic.”

“Many people think they all mean about the same thing but there are different specific meanings for all of these terms,” said Roberts.

For a food to be labeled as “healthy” it must meet certain criteria for the amount of fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium and have specific minimum amounts of vitamins, minerals or other beneficial nutrients.

If a food is labeled as “organic” it must meet standards set by the United States Department of Agriculture in the way the food is grown or produced.

“It is important to note that USDA makes no claims that organically grown food is more nutritious or safer than other non-organically produced food,” said Roberts.

When a food is labeled as “natural” it means that the product does not contain any synthetic or artificial ingredients or is minimally processed. According to Roberts the food label should explain how they are using the term such as “no added colorings” or “no added artificial ingredients” along with the “natural” claim.

“For example, a bag of fried snack chips could contain the term ‘natural’ on the bag if the manufacturer added no artificial ingredients but the chips could still be loaded with fat, calories and sodium,” said Roberts.

If a food is labeled as “natural” Roberts says don’t assume that it is a healthy choice. It only means no artificial ingredients have been added or that the food is minimally processed.

Look at the label closely to see how much fat, sugar, salt, vitamins, minerals and calories for a better idea of the healthfulness of the food,” said Roberts.

For more information on nutrition issues, contact any of the University of Missouri Extension offices in southwest Missouri, go online to http://extension.missouri.edu or contact one of the two nutrition and health education specialists working in the Ozarks: Tammy Roberts, (417) 682-3579 or Terry Egan, (417) 866-3039.