What does 15% fat ground turkey mean?
**The calculation below is for demonstration purposes only, this calculation should never be used to determine whether or not to consume a product. This calculation is exactly like the last calculation for the organic grass fed beef. But again, this calculation is showing you the deception of food labels and how they can provide you with factually correct but extremely misleading information that entices you to buy product.
To calculate how this product contains 15% fat is as follows:
Divide the total # of fat grams per serving, in this case 17g, (circled above in red) by the total number of grams in the serving size 112g (or 4oz), circled above in red.
In this example 17g fat/112g = .1517 X 100% = 15.17% Fat by weight.
This particular company claims this product is 15% Fat which means the remaining product must be 85% lean turkey.
The next calculation will show you exactly how to determine the percentage of fat calories per serving.
This calculation should always be used first when looking at a label to determine if the product should be consumed. Always, Always, Always, use this calculation to determine the % fat per serving.
How much fat is really in 4oz of 15% fat Ground turkey?
Before you begin this calculation you need to know how many calories are in a gram of fat. 1g of fat contains 9 calories.
As you saw in the last example, and is circled in the example above, there are 17g of fat per serving.
17g fat per serving X 9 calories per gram = 150 calories from fat. The fat calories are circled in red in the above image.
Now in order to determine the % of fat in a 4oz serving of ground turkey you need to divide the number of calories from fat (150) by the total number of calories per serving (220).
150 (Fat Calories)/220 (Total Calories) = .6818 X 100 = 68% Fat.
A 4oz serving of 15% fat turkey actually contains 68% fat, more than half (50%) of the 4oz serving of turkey meat is fat. 32% of the serving is actually lean meat, not 85% as they claim.
How much saturated fat is in a 4oz serving of 15% fat Ground turkey?
To take this one step further 4g of fat in this meat are saturated fat.
4g saturated fat X 9 calories = 72 calories saturated Fat/150 total Calories from fat = .24 X 100 = 24% of the fat in this meat is saturated fat.
According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the United States Department of Agriculture (2015) increased consumption of saturated fat is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (p. 27). According to the American Heart Association (2016) “your liver produces more cholesterol when you eat a diet high in saturated and trans fat”. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP, 2002) recognizes that “among the fatty acids that make up the total fat in the diet, only saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids raise LDL cholesterol levels” (p.3263).
Trans Fats— while this labels lists it at 0g there is a loophole in the Code of Federal Regulations and Food and Drug Administrations (2017) labeling guidelines which state that if the product contains less than .5g trans fat per serving it does not need to be included on the label (para. 34). According to the FDA (2015) and the Director of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Susan Mayne, Ph.D., trans fats are found naturally in all animal foods but can also be found in fully and partially hydrogenated oils as well as other edible oils (para. 6).
Take a moment to read the enticing language: Its 85% Lean and only 15% Fat. Again this is anything but 15% fat as we will see again. Let’s find out if this product is truly healthy?
How many grams of fat are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
17g fat per serving X 9 calories per gram = 153 calories from fat (this product rounded down to 150).
What is the percentage of calories from fat in this 4oz serving of ground turkey?
Now in order to determine the % of fat in 4oz serving of ground turkey we need to divide the number of calories from fat (150) by the total number of calories per serving (220). 150/220 = .68 x 100 = 68%.
68% of this 4oz serving of 100% ground turkey is fat.
The goal of a whole foods plant-based diet is to consume predominantly whole plant-based foods as well as consuming approximately 15% of calories or less from fat, while also avoiding animal based foods. In august 2010, after years of peer reviewed published scientific literature, two programs proven to have beneficial effects on stopping the progression and even reversing the progression of heart disease, both the Pritikin program and Ornish diets, consisting of 10 – 15% of calories from fat or less, are now covered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (Horrigan, 2010, p. 346).
How many grams of saturated fat are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
4g of fat in this ground turkey are saturated fat. 4g saturated fat X 9 calories =36 calories saturated fat/150 total calories from fat = .24 X 100 = 24%.
24% of the fat in this 4oz serving of ground turkey is saturated fat.
The American Heart Association ([AHA], 2016a) recommends that individuals consume no more than 5 to 6% of their daily calories from saturated fat and that individual consume no more than 11 to 13 grams of saturated fat a day (para. 14). According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) (2015) increased consumption of saturated fat is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (p. 27). According to the American Heart Association (2016, b) “your liver produces more cholesterol when you eat a diet high in saturated and trans fat”. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) (2002), recognizes that “among the fatty acids that make up the total fat in the diet, only saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids raise LDL cholesterol levels” (p.3263).
Evidence suggests that as the level of saturated fat intake increases so does the level of low density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration in the blood, thus increasing the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) (Institute of Medicine [IOM], 2002, p. 542). According to the IOM (2002) an upper limit is not set “for saturated fatty acids because any incremental increase in saturated fatty acid intake increases CHD risk” (p. 422). However, according to the IOM (2002) it is nearly impossible to consume a diet devoid of saturated fat due to a mixture of fatty acids however “it is possible to have a diet low in saturated fatty acids” (pp. 422-423).
How many grams of trans fat are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
Trans Fats— 0g because the 4oz serving of ground turkey contains less than .5g of trans fat and therefore does not need to be labeled as containing trans fat. Because this is an animal product there is a small but significant amount of trans fat in it.
Trans Fats— while this labels lists it at 0g there is a loophole in the Code of Federal Regulations and Food and Drug Administrations (2017) labeling guidelines which state that if the product contains less than .5g trans fat per serving it does not need to be included on the label (para. 34). According to the FDA (2015) and the Director of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Susan Mayne, Ph.D., trans fats are found naturally in all animal foods but can also be found in fully and partially hydrogenated oils as well as other edible oils (para. 6).
Evidence suggests that as the level of trans fat intake increases so does the level of low density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration in the blood, thus increasing the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) (IOM, 2002, p. 423). According to the IOM (2002) an upper limit “is not set for trans fatty acids because any incremental increase in trans fatty acid intake increases CHD risk” (p. 423). However, according to the IOM (2002) “trans fatty acids are unavoidable in ordinary, nonvegan diets, consuming 0 percent of energy would require significant changes in patterns of dietary intake (p. 423).
How many milligrams of cholesterol are contained within an 4oz serving of ground turkey?
95mg of cholesterol in a 4oz serving of ground turkey. According to the HHS and USDA (2015) only animal products contain dietary cholesterol (p.90).
Evidence suggests that as the level of cholesterol intake increases so does the level of low density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration in the blood, thus increasing the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) (IOM, 2002, p. 542). According to the IOM (2002) “a tolerable upper intake level is not set for cholesterol because any incremental increase in cholesterol intake increases CHD risk (p. 542).
How many grams of carbohydrate are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
0g of carbohydrate.
How many grams of sugar are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
0g of sugar.
According to the HHS and USDA (2015) Americans should consume less than 10% of calories from added sugar (p. xiii). In a 2,000 or 2,400 calorie diet that means only 200 or 240 calories in the diet should come from added sugar.
How many grams of fiber are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
0g of fiber.
According to the IOM (2002) “an adequate intake (AI) for Total Fiber in Foods is set at 38 and 25 g/d for young men and women, respectively, based on the intake level observed to protect against coronary heart disease” (p. 339)
How many milligrams of sodium are in a 4oz serving of ground turkey?
95mg of sodium.
According to the American Heart Association ([AHA], 2016) Americans should consume “no more than 2,300 miligrams (mgs) a day and an ideal limit of no more than 1,500 mg per day for most adults” (para. 1). Therefore if our diet should contain approximately 2,000 to 2,400 calories per day, that means for every 100 calories consumed, 100mg of sodium can be consumed. Which equals the approximate 1 to 1 ratio of sodium to calories. The lower recommendation of 1,500 is an ideal goal. According to the AHA “1 teaspoon salt = 2,300mg” (para. 6). Also, the AHA (2016) recognizes that the human body needs no more than 500mg of salt per day to function properly (para. 15).
Overview of ground turkey
In just a 4oz serving of ground turkey there are 95mg cholesterol, 4g saturated fat, and it is labeled as having 0g trans fat which means it contains under .5g per serving. There are 0g of sugar, 0g of fiber and 95mg of sodium. Keep in mind that any incremental increase above zero in cholesterol, saturated fat, and trans fat increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. According to the IOM (2002), “the report doesn’t set maximum levels for saturated fat, cholesterol, or trans fatty acids, as increased risk exists at levels above zero, however the recommendation is to eat as little as possible while consuming a diet adequate in important other essential nutrients” (para. 8).
Textured vegetable protein cooks up similar to ground turkey and there are also many new products arriving on store shelves at grocery stores that are familiar to, and taste similar to, animal products. These products are lower in fat, saturated fat, and trans fat, if oil is used in their production they may contain trace amounts of trans fat and should therefore be avoided, however they contain no cholesterol.
Copyright © 2017 Kenoshaheart.org
Website Disclaimer