Read the Labels

We often head to shop without even paying attention to the labels. We certainly need to watch out on what these foods could offer us. Be careful, you are not only adding yummy looking foods to your basket but worst, you are adding extra few pounds to your belly. Before you know it, your size eight trousers will no longer fit you. And that sucks.

 

Always have keen eyes to five things on food labels.

• The Sugar content

Sucrose is the common word linked to sugar. But there are other forms present in the food we usually see in the market including glucose, fructose, dextrose, maltose and lactose.  

In the nutrition information panel on the label, we can find figures which we need to be familiar with. In every 100g of the product, sugar between 2g and 10 g per is said to be moderate amount of sugar. 2 g or less per is small amount of sugar while 10 g or more is too much amount of sugar.  This is very vital especially when you are a diabetic person.

• The Sodium Content

Too much sodium can cause us a lot of trouble. Choose foods with less sodium or salt. In every 100g of food product, 0.1 g or less sodium is small amount while 0.5g or more sodium is too much. Every day we need to consider the salt intake.

• The Saturated Fat Content

With the increase consumption of saturated fat, bad cholesterol also increases; therefore increasing the risk of heart diseases. Saturated fats are readily available in processed foods. So again, read the labels. In every 100g of food product, 5g or more of saturated fat is too much. 1 g or less of saturates is a small fat while saturate content between 1g and 5g is moderate amount of saturated fat.

• No-added Sugar Label

This is not true all the time. Products may have artificial sweeteners.  Naturally, sugar can be present in food like fruits and milk. So be extra careful with that.

• Less Trans Fat

Like saturated fat, trans fat raises the levels of bad cholesterol which increases chance of heart problems. Trans fat are formed by partially hydrogenating plants. So choose food with less trans fat. Watch out for hydrogenating oils on labels of your spreads, biscuits, and other pastry foods.

Nutritional Information are made available to us by food manufacturers to read and be aware of what we intend to offer our bodies. Just spend time in scrutinizing the figures to avoid the unwanted effects of too much of something.