Wanna Get Food Savvy? Become an INGREDIENT DETECTIVE People often ask us where to start when they are feeling inspired to make changes to their food choices... Making the right food choices can be the most difficult challenge faced by many people today. Raised in a fast paced society of supermarkets exploding with packaged foods and exposure to social media laden with conflicting advice about what foods are healthy, finds many people feeling like they are caught in a trap with no way out. (We’ve definitely been there!) We all have the best intentions when making healthy food choices. When reflecting on our own food journeys some of the decisions we have made with best intentions were very different to what we practice today. Our food journeys have progressed at different paces often taking two steps forward and one step back; sometimes even taking a complete circle. Throughout the ups and downs of our food journeys the most influential practice we have committed to is reading the ingredients list on every food item we lay our hands on. This simple step will bring the knowledge and awareness required for change, putting the power of choice back into your hands. Reading ingredients lists can be daunting when you start, so we have come up with a simple guide to help you get off on the right foot. 1. First is Most Ingredients listed on packaged foods are listed in order from most to least. So, if sugar is the first ingredient on that list then it is the main ingredient of that food. 2. Do You Recognise it? If you don’t know what an ingredient is, chances are you shouldn’t be eating it as your body wont recognise it either. 3. Less is Best Stick to the least number of ingredients possible. Anything with more than 6 ingredients is questionable. 4. Ingredients to avoid: • Refined sugar and all of its pseudonyms (for eg; invert sugar, sucrose, maltose, dextrose, High fructose corn syrup, evaporated cane juice, glucose, maltodextrin, barley malt extract) • Vegetable Oils (canola, soy bean, vegetable shortening) • Numbers. Numbers are mostly codes for artificial colours, flavours and preservatives so avoid or beware of them. Some numbers are safer than others. For an excellent resource see the Chemical Maze App which is linked in the comments 5. Avoid Marketing Ploys Don’t be fooled by marketing propaganda. Be wary of labels claiming ‘sugar free’ or ‘low fat’ or ‘natural flavours’.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 09:33:23 +0000