How to Read Food Labels Without Being Tricked

As easy as it may seem many of us are confused when reading the nutrition labels on processed foods and many of them contain harmful and artificial ingredients that we couldn't even begin to pronounce. But even as consumers are becoming more health conscious, manufacturers are coming up with more tricks to mislead us. Learning how to read the information of packaged foods and actually using the nutrition labels will help you to compare products and buy foods that are better in the long run.

When buying processed foods, you have to be very careful in what you choose. Companies often switch out now-known harmful ingredients with ones that are very similar but have a different name. For example sugar has many names:

• Types of sugar: beet sugar, brown sugar, buttered sugar, cane sugar, caster sugar, coconut sugar, date sugar, golden sugar, invert sugar, muscovado sugar, organic raw sugar, raspadura sugar, evaporated cane juice and confectioner's sugar

• Types of syrup: carob syrup, golden syrup, high fructose corn syrup, honey, agave nectar, malt syrup, maple syrup, oat syrup, rice bran syrup and rice syrup

• Added sugars: barley malt, molasses, cane juice crystals, lactose, corn sweetener, crystalline fructose, dextran, malt powder, ethyl maltol, fructose, fruit juice concentrate, galactose, glucose, disaccharides, maltodextrin and maltose

---

Tips

Product ingredients are listed in size of quantity, if Cane sugar is the first ingredient in the list you know that that is the largest portion of the food. A good tip is to read the first three ingredients on the label and if they are refined grains, hydrogenated oils, or some sort of sugar, it may not be the healthiest option. Rule of thumb: Avoid the longer and more complicated lists,

Serving Sizes are often used to deceive people as well. Because these serving seizes are generally much smaller than what people regularly eat in one sitting, this is how they convince consumers that there are far less calories or sugars than there are.

% Daily Value (Percent Daily Value) is a guide to the amount of nutrients in a serving of food, on a scale of 0%-100%. For example, if the label lists 15 percent for calcium, it means that one serving provides 15 percent of the calcium you need each day. It will tell you whether that food is high or low in a specific nutrient, 5% being low and 20% being very high.

Common Misleading Labels

Take into consideration that for many manufactures, it is not required that producers are certified and there are little to no inspections of the food processing.

One of the best tips is to always ignore the labels on the front of the products, although they are there, they are not necessarily true. The FDA doesn't closely watch what companies are stating on their packages unless it is regarding the actual nutrition label, and even then, the FDA does not regulate a large portion of products out there. Like many other strategies to lure more consumers, research shows that products with labels boasting titles like "Low fat", "100% Whole Wheat", "Phthalate free" and "BPA free" are much more likely to sell than others.

Source of Fiber: This means that the food has more than 2 grams of fiber per serving, in perspective, apples have on average 4-5 grams of fiber. "High Fiber", means that there is at least 4 grams per serving and "Very High Source of Fiber" means that there is at least 6 grams per serving.

Low Fat: "Low Fat" means that there is no more than 3 grams of fat per serving, but pay attention to the amount of servings per product. A product low in fat may be very high in calories due to added sugars. It must must contain less than 3 grams of fat per 100 grams for food or 1.5 grams of fat per 100 ml for drinks.

Organic: Organic produce and other ingredients are grown without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, genetically modified organisms, or ionizing radiation. Because the USDA regulates foods labeled "Organic", much more often than they do any other, it is more likely that these foods are actually organic. Producers must submit an application form for certification which includes the types of operation, substance history for the past three years of operation, organic products to be grown, raised, and produced, and their plan for practices and substance use. But just because a product is organic doesn't mean it is essentially healthy for you. For example organic cane sugar is still isn't good for you.

Natural: Food labeled "natural," according to the USDA definition, does not contain artificial ingredients or preservatives and the ingredients are only minimally processed. However, they may contain antibiotics, growth hormones, and other similar chemicals.

All Natural: The USDA does no have any separate requirements for "Natural" and "All Natural" foods. Foods with this labeling are most likely no different than foods labeled "Natural".

Multigrain: This simply means that there is more than one type of grain in the product, and they are most likely refined grains, which are grains that have been significantly modified from their natural composition.

Made with Whole Grain: Many of the foods boasting these labels, main ingredient is actually refined white flour which is considered a "whole grain", but is stripped of its outer layer which is where all of the fiber is.

Zero-trans fat: Trans fats or artificial trans fats are unsaturated forms of fat. They are created by pumping hydrogen molecules into vegetable oils, changing the chemical structure of the substance from a liquid to a solid. Keep in mind that natural trans fats are perfectly normal and are not harmful, but artificial trans fats can be seriously harmful. "Zero-trans fat', means that there is less than 0.5 grams of tans fat per serving, but because serving sizes can be very small you could actually be eating a lot more trans fats than you think.

Gluten-free: This only means that the product doesn't contain gluten, which many people have an intolerance to. The food cannot contain wheat, spelt, rye, or barely, but it is more than likely that the gluten is replaced with other processes sugars and fats, so if you are not gluten intolerant I don't encourage you to choose some of the processed foods with "Gluten-free labels.

---

Always stay weary of high amounts of saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, and sugar. While products will try to lure you in with misguiding labels, always read the actual Nutrition Labels and pay attention to the serving sizes.

---

References