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| Monday, April 26, 2010 |
| Food Label Knowledge |
Did you know that I’m a big fan of shopping? Yes, I think I’ve mentioned it once or twice before. I embrace all types of shopping, but nothing excites me more than shopping for FOOD. I know I told you I don’t like to cook, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like to eat! One of the challenges I face when food shopping is deciphering those crazy food labels. Can we trust the glittery print on the packages that promises all kinds of healthy wonderfulness?
The Huffington Post made a list of the "9 Most Misleading Food Labels" to help us out. These were the ones that stood out to me:
"All Natural"
I have to admit that this one has trumped me in the past. It turns out that the FDA and USDA don’t really have any concrete rules about this label. So basically, this means that everybody and their mother can slap the term on their product without any repercussions. Not cool. If you’re looking for food that is grown without the use of pesticides or growth hormones, look for the "organic" label.
"0 Trans Fat"
Everyone’s getting on the "no trans fat" bandwagon! Believe me, I’m all for getting rid of trans fat in foods (who wants bad cholestrol clogging up their arteries?), but I caution you to take a second look at the labels before stocking up on those "0 trans fat" Hot Pockets. Sneaky manufacturers are reducing the amount of trans fat in their products by hiking up the saturated fat! Two wrongs don’t make a right, people…
"Made With Real Fruit"
When I was a little Eunice, nothing made my day like a sweet pack of fruit snacks in my lunchbox! My favorite flavor was strawberry, with cherry being a close second. Wait, what’s that? Are you telling me that there were no actual strawberries in my snack? That’s right, folks. My strawberry fruit snack was actually made with pears from concentrate and a whole lot of corn syrup. Sad.
Shady Serving Sizes
You know when you check the label of your favorite ice cream and get super stoked that it only has 100 calories per serving? And then you go home and realize that a "serving" is ¼ of a cup (a.k.a basically nothing)?! I hate when that happens. Of course, this is an exaggeration, but it points out the importance of carefully reading the serving sizes on food labels. Even if you think that the serving size for your bottle of soda should be the entire bottle of soda, this is not always the case. Shady!
Although there are some sneaky food manufacturers out there, educating ourselves about food labels and claims can help us to weed through the shadiness. Knowledge is still power, as corny as it sounds! Check out this guide for more information about label claims.
- Eunice
If you like this article, you might also enjoy...
Sensei Talks: What are sulfites and why are they in our food?
Sensei Talks: What Exactly are Sugar Alcohols?
Labels: Eunice, food for thought, healthy living, healthy tips
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posted by My Sensei @ Monday, April 26, 2010   |
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| 5 Comments: |
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Great stuff... yes, they are sneaky out there so good for people to read this & understand when they go shopping!
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Darn. They got me with the "real fruit" one. Now can somebody slap an "all natural" sticker on some cake slices. I'll feel better about it then.
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Gotta love labels right??!! What's really so sad is how few people truly take the time to read the labels rather than just reading the bold callouts like "lite", "no trans fats" etc.
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Good post. I love when I look at some "berry" punch for my kids and it is made with apple and pear juice!! Berry?
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wow, great post i really like it.
keep posting stuff like this
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Great stuff... yes, they are sneaky out there so good for people to read this & understand when they go shopping!