Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Read...Before You Eat!

Read...Before You Eat!

Just yesterday, one of my new clients (who wants to lose belly fat) whatsapped me pics of protein bars. He prefers being a vegetarian at home. He wanted to know if he could snack on these bars for protein. 
So many, especially vegetarians, are under the illusion that this is a great way to make up for the lack of proteins in the diet. Fortunately for him, I warned him against doing that. I explained to him how these products have a lot of hidden undesirable ingredients like fat and sugars in shocking proportions.
But many are buying these packaged foods for convenience. While purchasing, we check the expiry date. But rarely, do we check the list of ingredients. It’s time we got to know what we are eating. The easiest way to do this is to read what the food labels say.
Food manufacturers entice us to buy their products with bright colors on the packages, tempting photos of the products. They even make some sort of health claim on the label. If a product is reduced in fat or made with natural ingredients, for example, it's got to a healthy, right? This is what most people, especially the layperson would believe. But there’s more to it than what meets the eye!



Food packages are also labeled with the latest buzz words - whole grains, trans fats, low-carb, fat-free, organic, heart-healthy – this is how manufacturers lure you into buying their products. But, while food manufacturers cannot lie to you about the nutrition and ingredients of their products, they can easily mislead you into thinking something is healthier than it really is. So never mind that one healthy ingredient, look for the unhealthy ingredients that go into the food to enhance its taste.



While the claims made on food labels are regulated, they can be a little deceiving, so you need to be smart before you buy any food item with a health claim on the label. Labels like Cholesterol-free, Fat-free, Sugar-free, Made with whole grains, Contains Omega-3s, Made with real fruit, should not be taken at face value.
And the ads are so convincing that most people really believe the manufacturers’ clains to be genuine. Don’t forget, they are not here to safeguard your health. They are interested in making their money. 
It’s bad enough they are misleading, and usually more advertising than factual information, but you also need special glasses to read them. The nutrition labels on products are written with a minuscule font.

Understanding Food Labels
Food labels list their ingredients in order of their prevalence within the item
The earlier it appears in the list, the more of it there is in the food
Those with high BP, cholesterol and diabetics have to be careful of the sodium, fat and sugar content
Information concerning vitamin and nutrient content is often accompanied by a percentage of your ‘Recommended Daily Intake’
Those recommended intakes are based on a specific diet
It also doesn’t take into account your lifestyle: the more active you are, the higher your nutrient requirement will be




Health Claims
  Cholesterol Free
  Contains whole grains
  Fat Free
  No Trans fat
  Contains Omega-3
  Sugar Free
              Made with real fruits


The Truth Behind The Hype

Cholesterol Free
Advertising that a food is cholesterol-free
Meaningless claim if the food has lot of sugar
Your body converts sugar to fat and triglycerides



Contains whole grains
If it says ‘Contains whole grains’, it doesn’t necessarily mean that whole grains are a significant portion of the contents
Manufacturers can get away with advertising this even if they include only a negligible portion of whole grains
There is a difference between whole wheat flour and wheat flour
Wheat flour is usually refined wheat flour (maida)

Fat-free or Low Fat
Fat-free or low fat does not mean healthy
Very often, to make up for the fat, food manufacturers add other ingredients like refined carbohydrates, sugar and salt to compensate for the flavour
If the percentage of fat is 15 grams of fat per serving, the total fat that you eat depends on how many servings you end up eating. Be careful! ‘Low fat’ may not always mean ‘low calories’.
Eating a low-fat diet is not the key to weight loss




No Trans fat
No Trans fat. Most products that used to contain large amounts of trans fat simply replaced them with saturated fats
‘No trans fats’ label is allowed only if they have less than one gram per serving
This means you could still be consuming them in high quantities if you are a heavy snacker
So control portion size
Trans fats occur naturally in meat, but their main dietary source is packaged baked products
Trans fats are worse for you than saturated fats. They increase your LDL cholesterol and reduce your HDL cholesterol

Contains Omega-3
Food manufacturers have jumped on to the Omega-3 bandwagon to capitalize on the public awareness
When a food product says, ‘Contains Omega-3,’ check how many grams of Omega-3
Check its amount in ratio to other fats, like saturated fats and trans fats
A healthy source of Omega-3 will have a high ratio of polyunsaturated fats (flaxseed) to saturated (butter) or trans fats
It will also have low sugar content.

Sugar Free
Sugar-free food contains ‘artificial sweeteners’
Sucralose, Saccharin, Aspartame, High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), Barley malt syrup, Dextrin, Glucose, Lactose, Levulose, Lite or Light sugar, Maltrodextrin, Maltodextrose, Mannitol, Xylitol, Sorbitol, Maltitol, Mannose, Nectars
Artificial Sweeteners - ketchup bottles, biscuits, baked goods, dairy products, carbonated drinks
•             Stimulates appetite and cravings
•             False sense of hunger
•             Leads to sugar cravings

Deadly Sugars

Aspartame
In large enough amounts:
•             Can damage your DNA
•             Memory loss
•             Depression
•             Brain damage
•             Vision problems
•             Brain tumors
•             Insomnia
•             High Fructose Corn Syrup




High Fructose Corn Syrup
Made from genetically modified corn. sweeter than sugar, is relatively cheaper, and helps in preserving the food longer

Its effects:
•             Shuts off body’s natural appetite control switches
•             Body doesn’t use fructose as immediate energy source; it is stored as fat
•             Liver tumors
•             DNA damage
•             Inflammation
•             Increased production of free radicals
•             Pancreatic cancer


Trans fat
Trans fat is a cholesterol raising, heart weakening, diabetes causing, belly building chemical
It raises LDL and lowers HDL
Also raises blood levels of other lipoproteins
 The more lipoproteins in your blood greater the risk of heart diseases

Look Out For
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils. These are full of trans-fats.
Sugar Content
Fat Content
Sodium Content




How to Find Hidden Fat
Look for any of the following:
•Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (trans fat)
•Shortening
•Milk solids
•Cream
•Palm oil
•Coconut oil
•Palm kernel oil
•…any other kind of oil

In some cases, you might find that eating a full fat version of certain foods is more satisfying than the fat free food. If that allows you to eat less, your fat intake might be lower by eating the fat free food.

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