Reading labels becomes easier the more you do it. Start becoming familiar with ingredient lists, nutritional information tables and marketing terms. Here are few tips to help avoid common food label pitfalls:
The facts about the listed ingredients:
The order of the listed ingredients is very important
Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the ingredient that is listed first, is the most abundant in the product, the one listed last is therefore the least abundant. So if for example sugar is listed first or second on the list of ingredients, then that would mean that sugar is one of most abundant ingredients in the product and probably should be avoided.
The same rule applies when you are looking specifically for healthy products, like wholewheat items. Clever marketing companies, ‘imply’ that a certain product is wholewheat and healthy for you, but if the wholewheat flour does not appear within the first 3 ingredients listed, it is not 100 percent wholewheat.
Be careful of misleading words
You may think a food product doesn’t contain a certain ingredient and that you are making a healthy choice by selecting this product e.g. items listed as sugar-free or fat-free, but take a good look at the ingredients list to make sure that it has not been listed under another name.
Alternative names for sugar:
- Corn syrup
- Invert sugar
- Glucose syrup
- Malt syrup
- High fructose corn syrup
- Dextrin
- Fructose
- Honey
- Lactose
- Maple syrup
- Molasses
- Nectar
- Sucrose
- Anhydrous dextrose
- Caramel
Alternative names for saturated fat or trans fatty acids-
- Beef fat
- Butter
- Chicken fat
- Coconut oil
- Cream
- Hydrogenated oils
- Palm kernel oil
- Palm oil
- Partially hydrogenated oils
- Pork fat (lard)
- Shortening.
Alternative names for Salt-
Our Top Tip
It is always best to try and avoid processed foods, the more ingredients listed, the more processed the food has been, so by opting for fresh foods you will find they have less preservatives, less artificial ingredients and therefore are generally a lot lower in saturated fat, trans fatty acids, sodium and sugar, and are generally higher in fibre.
The facts about the Nutritional Table:
All packaged food items are required by law to display the nutritional content in the form of a nutritional table. Each listed item is broken down into how much is present in a 100 g serving of solid food or a 100 ml serving of liquids and by the recommended serving size, which varies per product.
Total fat
Total fat and saturated fat are shown in grams (g). Your daily recommended fat intake varies from person to person, a dietitian will be able to calculate accurately what an individual’s fat intake should be. When selecting a product try to select foods that have healthy fats such as unsaturated and monounsaturated fats and try to reduce the intake of trans fats or saturated fats.
Trans fat
Grams of saturated fat should be less than one third of the total grams of fat in the product. Try to avoid these fats where possible.
Cholesterol
Too much cholesterol can lead to heart disease. Your goal should be to eat less than 300mg of cholesterol a day. Foods that are high in cholesterol include-
- Meats, such as beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and fish.
- Dairy products, such as milk, cheese, and ice cream
- Organ meats, such as liver
- Egg yolks
- Some shellfish, such as shrimps, prawns, crayfish, and lobster
Protein
The required daily allowance of protein is between 45-60 grams per day. You can get protein from poultry, fish, meat, eggs, milk, cheese, nuts, beans, grains and some vegetables.
Sodium
The Recommended Daily Allowance of sodium should be 2 400 mg or less a day, this equates to about 6g of salt, too much salt in your diet could lead to high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, strokes and heart attacks.
Total carbohydrate/of which are sugars
Look for a product that has high numbers of total carbohydrate, but low numbers for sugars associated with the carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates give you long-lasting energy, whereas products that contain high sugar content, will spike your blood sugar quickly, then lower it just as quickly, these blood sugar fluctuations are not healthy for your body.
Dietary fibre
A diet high in fibre can help lower cholesterol levels, so look for products with a high fibre content where possible
Vitamins and minerals (where present)
Choose foods with the highest values. Most foods won't give you all you need of any one vitamin or mineral, a good multivitamin is generally recommended.
% Daily Value or RDA (Required Daily Allowance)
This column tells you what percentage of the recommended daily allowance (of nutrients) a food gives you.
Serving size
The serving size is often smaller than what people typically eat. For example, most breakfast cereals recommend a 30 g serving size, but people generally eat more than that amount. So calculate the nutritional information based on the amount you’re actually eating.
Our Top Tip
Food labels can help you shop and eat for a better, healthier lifestyle by comparing the labels on different brands of one food you normally buy, such as dried cereal or canned soup. Focus on one thing at a time. If you want to eat less fat, compare total fat and saturated fat content. If you want to eat less salt, compare sodium. Then select the brand with the least fat or sodium.
