How to Calculate Fat Content Based on Moisture

You can easily calculate fat content if you are provided with the total moisture. The moisture in a food is any liquid that evaporates through drying or dehydration. Dry matter is the material that would be left if you took out all moisture from a food. Nutritionally, dry matter consists of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. You can determine the total dry matter with only the total moisture and easily understand how much fats and lipids are present in the food. This can be an effective way to estimate your fat intake if you are provided an accurate moisture content.

• 1

  Find the total dry matter in a food by subtracting the percent moisture from 100 percent.

  Example: If a food is 75 percent moisture, it is 25 percent dry matter (100 percent minus 75 percent). It is assumed that moisture is a previously calculated or given value.

• 2

  Divide the given protein and carbohydrate percentage by the dry matter percentage (from step 1).

  Example: If protein is 10 percent divide 10 percent by 25 percent to equal 40 percent protein.

  If carbohydrate is 8 percent divide 8 percent by 25 percent to equal 32 percent carbohydrate.

• 3

  Calculate fat content by subtracting protein and carbohydrate calculations (from step 2) by 100 percent to get your estimated total fat percent of a food.

  Example: 100 percent minus 40 percent (protein) minus 32 percent (carbohydrate) to equal 28 percent fat