Mind what you eat: decoding labels
You can’t avoid the
ready-to-eat foods that overflow from the aisles of today’s grocery shops.
They’re so tempting, screaming words like ‘sugar free’ and ‘cholesterol free’
and ‘diet’. But do you really understand the labelling? Most people don’t, and
that can affect their health. Our quick guide may help clear things up.
Zero Cholesterol
When we see a food package labelled zero cholesterol, we misinterpret it as zero fat. But that can be far from true. Technically and legally, the package could have tons of oil, but still no cholesterol. How? Because olive oil and sunflower oil have zero cholesterol. Cholesterol is a fat found in animals and humans, but not in plants. But the oils still have fats.
When we see a food package labelled zero cholesterol, we misinterpret it as zero fat. But that can be far from true. Technically and legally, the package could have tons of oil, but still no cholesterol. How? Because olive oil and sunflower oil have zero cholesterol. Cholesterol is a fat found in animals and humans, but not in plants. But the oils still have fats.
Zero Sugar
The moment you see these words, you think, ‘diet food’, right? Wrong. Chocolate could contain saccharine or aspartame and therefore be zero sugar, but there is fat in the butter and the cocoa. And even if it is offered as a diet food, if you eat it in large quantities, you’ll continue to put on weight.
The moment you see these words, you think, ‘diet food’, right? Wrong. Chocolate could contain saccharine or aspartame and therefore be zero sugar, but there is fat in the butter and the cocoa. And even if it is offered as a diet food, if you eat it in large quantities, you’ll continue to put on weight.
Diet and Zero Calorie
We see these labels on fizzy drinks and think we can go ahead and guzzle them without guilt. But actually, these products are loaded with salt, aspartame and preservatives and harmful chemicals that cause bloating rather than weight loss.
We see these labels on fizzy drinks and think we can go ahead and guzzle them without guilt. But actually, these products are loaded with salt, aspartame and preservatives and harmful chemicals that cause bloating rather than weight loss.
Serving Size
Food manufacturers can be tricky with serving sizes: they differ on each food label and may not equal the serving size you normally eat. So if you eat twice the serving listed on the label, you will need to double all the numbers in the nutritional facts section.
Food manufacturers can be tricky with serving sizes: they differ on each food label and may not equal the serving size you normally eat. So if you eat twice the serving listed on the label, you will need to double all the numbers in the nutritional facts section.
Cholesterol
This will tell you how much cholesterol you get from eating one serving of the food. HDL is ‘good’ cholesterol and LDL is ‘bad’ cholesterol. As before, don’t misinterpret zero cholesterol as zero fat.
This will tell you how much cholesterol you get from eating one serving of the food. HDL is ‘good’ cholesterol and LDL is ‘bad’ cholesterol. As before, don’t misinterpret zero cholesterol as zero fat.
Sodium
We need just 10 to 20gm of sodium a day. But canned foods (even ones that don’t taste too salty) and savouries have more sodium than you need.
We need just 10 to 20gm of sodium a day. But canned foods (even ones that don’t taste too salty) and savouries have more sodium than you need.
Sugar
Usually, when a packet says ‘carbs’, what it means is sugar. You don’t need energy from sugar, you need it from whole grain. One teaspoon of sugar is 4gms. And “no sugar added” does not mean that the product is calorie or carbohydrate free or even sugar free (it could have too much natural sugar, as in a fruit juice, which could still do damage to your body).
Usually, when a packet says ‘carbs’, what it means is sugar. You don’t need energy from sugar, you need it from whole grain. One teaspoon of sugar is 4gms. And “no sugar added” does not mean that the product is calorie or carbohydrate free or even sugar free (it could have too much natural sugar, as in a fruit juice, which could still do damage to your body).
Dr Shikha SharmaHTBR 140713
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