The Health Star Rating is designed to help you compare packaged foods that are similar, like two different kinds of yoghurts or three different kinds of breakfast cereals.1
Packaged foods with more stars are healthier for you. The highest number of stars a food can get is five, and the lowest is half a star. You can tell how many stars the packaged food is rated by looking at the number of stars that are shaded in, and by reading the number in the middle of the icon.
This doesn’t mean that you should only eat foods with good Health Star Ratings. There may not be any Health Star Ratings on very healthy foods, like vegetables and fruits, if these aren’t packaged.
Along with the stars, the Health Star Rating label may also show you how much kilojoules, saturated fat, sodium, and sugar are in 100g of the packaged food. You may also see the words LOW and HIGH under some of these nutrients.
LOW is only used to talk about a nutrient that can harm your health, like saturated fat, sugar, and sodium. This means that whenever you see the word LOW, the packaged food has low amounts of the harmful nutrient, which is a good thing.
HIGH is only used to talk about a nutrient that is good for your health, like fibre, calcium, or other vitamins and minerals. This means that whenever you see the word HIGH, the packaged food has high amounts of the helpful nutrient, which is a good thing.*
*This may not apply to you if your doctor or dietitian has recommended that you restrict certain nutrients in your diet.
Will you use the Health Star Rating during this week’s grocery run?
References:
ANZ.2021.17455.AND -PND.1 (v1.2)
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