Food labels: Read them and weep? Ignore and buy?

[Gifted Gourmet]

article here

Oh, the irony. A nation full of overweight people is also full of label readers. Nearly 80 percent of Americans insist they check the labels on food at the grocery store.  They scan the little charts like careful dieters, looking for no-nos such as fat and calories and sugars. Yet even when the label practically screams, "Don't do it!" people drop the package into the cart anyway. He adds: "It's got to taste good. Otherwise, there's no point."

The survey of 1,003 adults, conducted May 30 to June 1, found:

_Women check labels more frequently than men...

_Married men are more likely to check labels than unmarried men...

_Younger people are more likely to look at calories on food labels...

I read them and usually pay enough attention to heed the rules .. but there have been many times when I read them, shake my head in disbelief, and toss them into my cart, with some mumbled excuse about "it's not for me anyway .."

And you? Your habit?

[The Old Foodie]

My most serious grudge is the sort of labelling that is technically correct, but clearly meant to mislead, such as one that screams "NO CHOLESTEROL", when the product is still full of other saturated fats.

Does that happen in the U.S as well?

[Pan]

I read labels, but I haven't eliminated anything in my diet, though I'm limiting my consumption of certain things.

[purplewiz]

Yes, I read the labels and yes, I generally put the item back if it doesn't meet my particular dietary requirements unless I'm buying it for something other than every day consumption. My biggest gasp lately has been these "yogurt" coated cereals: as far as I can tell that coating is pure sugar.

I do agree with one point:

It's got to taste good. Otherwise, there's no point.

You'd think this would be a no brainer: people do not give up things they like in favor of things they don't like. They give up things they like in favor of things they like MORE.

Marcia.

[petite tête de chou]

I read labels if I'm buying a product I'm not familiar with. I'll usually choose the item that has the lower sodium content and don't really concern myself with much else. Well, that's not completely accurate. I'll also choose the item that doesn't include high fructose corn syrup, like bread and butter pickle chips. Who needs the syrup when a less refined sugar is just fine. Waaay too much salt and syrup are added to things.

[SuzySushi]

With two people in my family with Type 1 diabetes, I am an avid label-reader, paying particular attention to calories, carbs, and fat content and secondarily to what types of sweeteners (if any) are used.

In general, I'm less concerned with whether products are "all natural" or contain artificial ingredients, although I sometimes reject products that have a laundry-list of unpronouncable chemical ingredients rather than the names of basic food ingredients.

[Jaden77]

I'll glance at the chart, but I'm really looking for those nasty hydrogenated oils, especially in breakfast bars and sliced bread. Manufacturers seem to be using less of them since they were exposed as a carcinogenic a few years ago, but in my opinion they should be banned.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Someone has suggested this: skip the nutrition label and go straight for the ingredient list. That's the crucial information you need to make a decision on.

Do you agree?

[Dana]

I totally agree, and it's usually what I do. If there are very many things in the product that I can't pronounce - i.e. salad dressings - I usually put it back. I usually can make the product better from scratch anyway.

[miladyinsanity]

I agree too. That's what I look at, not the nutrition table, and like Dana, put it back if there are too many Big Words with Too Many Syllables.

[Live It Up]

I'm generally pretty set in my ways when it comes to the foods that I buy. There's pretty much one brand of bread, one brand of canned tomatoes, one brand of pasta...but when there's something new that I need, yeah, I check the labels. I'm really sensitive to certain preservatives, so I don't buy any juices or prepared foods with potasium sorbate it them. That one turns up in a lot of stuff at farmer's markets, not just mass produced foods. The main things I check are fiber, trans fats, and the ingredient list for things like preservatives and MSG.

[birder53]

Sometimes the calorie information is a big reality check for me. If I'm shopping for entertaining purposes I ignore the calories. If it's something for daily consumption I take it into serious consideration. That's the only way I can ignore the calories when cooking for friends.

[Bombdog]

Someone has suggested this:  skip the nutrition label and go straight for the ingredient list. That's the crucial information you need to make a decision on.

Do you agree? 

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Yes

[petite tête de chou]

Someone has suggested this:  skip the nutrition label and go straight for the ingredient list. That's the crucial information you need to make a decision on.

Do you agree? 

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I completely agree.

[johnsmith45678]

My most serious grudge is the sort of labelling that is technically correct, but clearly meant to mislead, such as one that screams "NO CHOLESTEROL", when the product is still full of other saturated fats.

Does that happen in the U.S as well?

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Oh yeah...same thing happens in the US. From what I know, saturated fats are turned into cholesterol in the body. I have no idea what cholesterol is in food, but I think it's also on the label.

As for reading labels, I usually don't look at much more than fats and salt. Every once in a while I look at calories. Just about anything that's processed has long, chemical-sounding names - I don't worry much about them, but do try to avoid them and make things from scratch which tastes better.

[ghostrider]

Someone has suggested this:  skip the nutrition label and go straight for the ingredient list. That's the crucial information you need to make a decision on.

Do you agree? 

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No, you have to look at both, particularly if you're trying to avoid sodium as well as hydrogenated corn syrup & whatnot.

[tino27]

I'll look at the ingredient list first -- trans fats or high fructose corn syrup? It immediately goes back on the shelf. After then initial test, I'll then compare fat, sodium, and dietary fiber between equivalent products. It amazes me how much difference can exist between two brands of canned chickpeas. I'll usually try and go for lower sodium and higher fiber.

[phlox]

I check the ingredient list more faithfully than the label as well. HFCS and hydrogenated fats are put back on the shelf.

[jayt90]

Someone has suggested this:  skip the nutrition label and go straight for the ingredient list. That's the crucial information you need to make a decision on.

Do you agree? 

←

No, you have to look at both, particularly if you're trying to avoid sodium as well as hydrogenated corn syrup & whatnot.

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I look at both but pay more attention to the nutrition labels, as they are newly expanded whereas the ingredient list usually has the same old bugaboos.

There are big nutrition differences between brands, and I buy the items that give me more. Pilaros (from Spain) canned tomatoes, e.g., is way ahead of Heinz in calcium and vit. C. If I look at prepared tomato sauces, there is not much nutrition left after all the high temp mixing and processing.

Bottled roast peppers offer nothing, but I may keep one jar on hand.

Bottled lemon juice is a complete sham, taste wise and on the nutrition label.

High priced eggs have a slight advantage in Omega type fats, but otherwise are the same as the factory chicken eggs.

Reading and comparing labels has become a fun project while shopping, and my last checkup showed a steady improvement.

[MarketStEl]

Yes, I read the labels too--I do have to watch sodium content when buying stuff for my partner, and I also avoid hydrogenated fats, with one exception: I find that my biscuits come out lighter when made with shortening than they do when made with butter.

The new "Nutrition Facts" labels break out trans fats as well as saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, and this has led to at least one puzzling statistic: according to the "Nutrition Facts," Ritz crackers have 0g of trans fats per serving (~8 crackers--one ounce), yet partially hydrogenated vegetable oil appears on the ingredients list. How can this be?

As I sometimes drink carbonated sodas, I haven't eliminated HFCS from my diet, but I have made one notable shift, from fruit juice to sports drinks, because the latter have significantly less sugars and total carbs. The added electrolytes don't hurt either.

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I read labels on everything, but I look more at ingredients than at the calories and such. I'm worried more about the food allergies than calories and transfats.

[johnsmith45678]

What's supposed to be the problem with high fructose corn syrup?

[Shalmanese]

I was surprised when visiting the US that labels are only required to contain per serving size information. In Australia, all labels are required by law to have both per serving size and per 100gm information which makes it quick an easy to figure out the percentage fat/sugar in foods.

Off the top of my head, I can think of very few foods that I buy nowadays where I don't know basically pretty much exactly what is on the label. This is not especially hard when a lot of what I make is from scratch.

[MarketStEl]

What's supposed to be the problem with high fructose corn syrup?

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A study conducted a few years back suggested that there might be a link between the widespread adoption of HFCS and the dramatic rise in obesity in the U.S.

I believe there's a discussion over in Food Media & News of an article suggesting that this link may not be all that strong--I believe the story reports that the authors of the original study have since gone on record as downplaying the connection--and that HFCS, while higher in fructose (a simple sugar that the body stores more readily than sucrose) than regular corn syrup, is not high in fructose in absolute terms--only a couple of percentage points higher than regular corn syrup.

[jayt90]

I find that my biscuits come out lighter when made with shortening than they do when made with butter.

The new "Nutrition Facts" labels break out trans fats as well as saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, and this has led to at least one puzzling statistic: according to the "Nutrition Facts," Ritz crackers have 0g of trans fats per serving (~8 crackers--one ounce), yet partially hydrogenated vegetable oil appears on the ingredients list.  How can this be?

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If I was making bisquits I would try using lard, as long as the package said non-hydrogenated (some are, a few are not). Unless your cholesterol levels are too high...

The snack food companies quickly discovered a loop-hole allowing them to say 0% trans fats when there is a small amount of hydrogenated fat in the mix. Maybe a nutrition expert can explain this.

Oddly, a small percentage of trans fat appears in the labels for butter, ground beef patties, cheese, and other products from ruminants, as up to .4% occurs naturally.

This is why the only country banning trans fats (Denmark) allows a minmal amount, up to .4%.

There have been recent reports on the excessive levels of trans fats in fast food restaurants. Usually 5-15% in fried foods, though some like MacDonald's, have lowered the amount by changing over to non hydrogenated oil. It would be nice to have a disclosure available to consumers when they stand in line for these products.

KFC (Canada) responded to the negative media reports on their trans fat levels by saying they were working on the problem, but they did not want to compromise taste. Maybe there are bean counters at work on the problem...