We all fall for this trap. The trap that we think we are eating really healthy and not realizing how many sugar grams we are consuming. I know I take some of the blame but truthfully I blame marketing campaigns for the majority of our consumer choices.
Let me go into detail on how companies will hide the amount of sugar in the products we consume.
1. Calling a sugar by a different name.
Now, I didn’t say different language however it should be at this point. Sometimes if it’s sweet chances are there is a load of sugar in it. Names to watch out for are glucose, fructose, and sucrose. Others may be more difficult to identify. Because food companies are allowed to use sugars with unusual names, this ingredient can be camouflaged in your food.
2. Adding sugar to foods you would least expect.
This one gets me all the time. When we think sugar, we think candy, ice cream and maybe some daily snacks we tend to enjoy. However, beware! Look at your labels. Some food manufacturers pour sugar into foods that aren’t always considered sweet. Examples would be breakfast cereals, spaghetti sauce, and yogurt. Some yogurt cups contain as many as 6 tsp. of sugar (that is 29 grams, yikes).
3. Adding a health claim to their products.
It isn’t always easy to tell which products on the shelf are healthy and which are not. Manufacturers depend on words and labels such as low-fat, healthy, diet, and my favorite “NATURAL”. Don’t get fooled into these words. Read the nutritional label to make your own judgement if it is the healthiest thing for you to consume.
4. Lowering the portion size.
This is another way we get fooled by marketing. The food industry regularly lists portion sizes small in order for you to think the product is low in sugar. In actuality, there may be multiple servings in each product. To avoid this trap, carefully examine the number of servings per container prior to consumption.
Basically, just be aware of your daily consumption and reading your food labels will be the best source of guidance if you are watching your sugars. Don’t get fooled into manufacturer’s marketing. Food marketing is a billion dollar industry and it is easy to be fooled into thinking you are eating healthy but in fact, consuming more sugar then our bodies can process.