Becareful about Misleading Food Labels

[Toni-Lynn]

Question: How do you use food labels to maintain a healthy diet?

The Nutrition Facts box on every package of food you buy is a great help in maintaining a healthy diet. In fact, without it, you might misunderstand the labels on the front of food packaging – something that can lead you into some dangerous diet traps.
Here are some of the potentially misleading claims on food packaging, along with tips on how to verify their truth.


No Trans Fat. Trans fats are among today’s most feared food ingredients. They are known to increase the risk of heart disease and diabetes, and even affect muscle development. But merely a “no trans fat” label doesn’t guarantee that something is good for you. A bag of potato chips or box of cookies might be labeled trans-fat-free, but it can still be packed with fats, sugar and calories. Turn the box over and check out the amount of total fats and saturated fats.
The average adult should have less than 65 grams of fat in his diet, with only 20 of those coming from saturated fat. Do you really want to use up 10 grams of fat eating just 11 potato chips?


Reduced Fat. The question to ask yourself when you read “Reduced Fat” on a package is, “Compared to what?” A gooey cinnamon roll that used to have 16 grams of fat and now has 12 grams does indeed have 25 percent less fat, but it’s far from a health food and is still laden with calories. You should also question similar claims that food is “Reduced Sugar” and “Reduced Sodium.”


Made with Real Fruit Juice. Lots of foods marketed to kids feature the claim “Made with Real Fruit Juice” prominently on their front labels. The important question to ask is whether it also contains sugar. Check the listing of ingredients; they are listed from the largest ingredient to the smallest. If sugar appears before fruit juice or fructose in the listing, then the bulk of the sweetening is coming from plain white sugar, not fruit juice.


Made with Whole Grain. Everyone wants to add whole grain in their diet – it makes you feel fuller without adding calories and helps keep your blood sugar under control. A lot of breads and cereals claim to be made with whole grain, but are they really? There are two places to investigate. First, check the amount of dietary fiber under the Total Carbohydrates section. If there are less than 2 grams of fiber, that bread or cereal probably doesn’t contain much whole grain. Next, check the list of ingredients for items such as whole wheat flour or whole grain wheat. If regular “enriched wheat flour” appears before whole wheat or whole grain in the ingredients, the bread probably isn’t as healthy as you were led to believe.
Also, don’t be misled by the Percentage of Daily Value figures on the back of every box. Those percentages are based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Seniors and people trying to lose weight should be consuming less than 2,000 calories per day, so you’ll have to adjust those daily values. On the other hand, if you are feeding a teen or a very active adult or athlete, their daily requirements will be higher.
Finally, if you are watching your calories, read all the labels of all the ingredients you use. Many people forget all the added calories from condiments, such as ketchup, mayo and pickles, as well as the oils and butter used to prepare foods.



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