How many times have you gone grocery shopping and checked the label on the back of packages to see how many calories there are in ice cream, cookies or that sugary cereal you get for your kids? You might also have checked for the sodium content in potato chips or canned soups.

Maybe you couldn’t be bothered: the labels didn’t make sense, so you just threw what you usually get into the basket, went through the checkout line and drove back home without a second thought.

Well, now the U.S. Food & Drug Administration is considering putting the nutritional labeling on the front of packages, The New York Times reports. And that’s not all: the FDA also may change the standard serving size to reflect American eating habits more accurately. Here’s an excerpt from the story:

The problem is important because the standard serving size shown on a package determines all the other nutritional values on the label, including calorie counts. If the serving size is smaller than what people really eat, unless they study the label carefully they may think they are getting fewer calories or other nutrients than they are.

And if manufacturers increasingly push key nutrition facts to the front of packages — as many have begun doing — the confusion could be magnified. Rather than helping fight obesity, it may simply add to the perplexity over what makes a healthful diet.

What do you think? How helpful do you think these proposed changes might be? How much of a difference do you think it will make? Would it change how you and others shop? Or will it merely create more consumer confusion? How do you think food manufacturers will react?

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