© Katherine
Poehlmann, PhD
The key to
reading labels is not to look at the front of the package. That’s where you might
find tempting words like “Low Fat”, “Sugar Free”, or “All Natural Ingredients”.
What’s disturbing is that the food industry has lobbied the FDA to allow
thousands of ingredients added to processed food that by law do not have to be
listed.
Key things to
look for on the ingredients label:
Multi-syllable
chemicals. If you don’t
recognize it, don’t put it in your mouth.
Fats. There are usually four types of fats
listed on the label. The first two are BAD fats, the second two are GOOD
(natural) fats. The bad fats clog your arteries, raise cholesterol, and make you
fat. Aim for no more than 7% or 15 grams of saturated fat per day. Note that
most fast foods, especially fried chicken and French fries, are loaded with
trans fat, which is produced when liquid oil is made into a solid fat. Other
sources of trans fat are processed foods (snack crackers, chips, etc.) and
baked goods (cookies, cakes, donuts, etc.). Sources of good fats are oils from
corn, cottonseed, safflower, soybeans, and sunflower; also walnuts, mayonnaise,
pumpkin or sunflower seeds, and some salad dressings. An excellent resource on
the topic is Fats That Heal, Fats That Kill by Udo Erasmus.
Carbohydrates
(Carbs): This count,
shown in grams, is important to those watching their weight. Carbs convert to
sugar in the body. Net carbs equals the total carbs shown minus those grams
listed as dietary fiber.
Refined sugar in any form, including high fructose
corn syrup, sucrose, dextrose, and glucose. Natural sugars from fruits are OK.
Artificial
flavors and colorings.
These are undesirable, useless chemicals.
Salt. The number of milligrams (mg) of sodium
must be listed by law. Consume no more than 1500 mg per day for ages 19 to 50,
no more than 1300 mg daily for ages 50 to 70, and 1200 mg maximum for those
over 70. Restrict your intake even further if you have high blood pressure or
diabetes.
Spices. A truthful label would list the actual
names of spices.
Monosodium
Glutamate (MSG).
Unfortunately, this is sometimes classified as a “spice”, so it may not be
specifically listed. If you see “spice” (singular) it is likely MSG.
Enriched
flour (white or wheat).
This is depleted of all nutritional value. Chemicals or “vitamins” have been
added. Look for organic wheat or other whole grain flour.
Soy protein
isolate. This is an
inorganic ingredient in protein shakes and food bars.
Allergens like peanuts, milk products, corn-based
substances, soybeans, and wheat. Responsible manufacturers print specific
warnings on their labels, but usually the consumer must wade through the
ingredient list to find allergens.
Rules of
thumb:
The first 3 or 4
ingredients make up the key substances in the product by weight. The shorter
the list of ingredients, the more pure the product.
Just because a
product is sold in a health food store doesn’t mean you don’t need to read the
label.
Don’t assume the
package contents equals one serving. Multiply all amounts by the number of
servings. It may shock you to see, for example, that a package of microwave
popcorn contains 2.5 servings, which means 2.5 times the calories and fats.
Hint: look for
products labeled “Approved for Diabetics” since they contain limited salt and
sugar. Guidelines can be found on www.diabetes.org.
This website is managed by the American Diabetes Association.
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Dr. Poehlmann is
the author of Rheumatoid Arthritis: The Infection Connection, available
at Amazon.com and major bookstores,
or click here to order now.
Click here for definitions
of terms like “low fat” and “low sodium”.
Click here for
some specific examples
of labels with commentary.
For a related
article, click here: “Healthy
Eating”
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