Doctor shares tips for spotting important information on food labels
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When you're in the supermarket, you have to make constant decisions about what to put in your cart and what to pass up. It's hard to know which products are best for you, and a lot of the time, we just have to trust that food labels are giving us accurate information.Thankfully, Queensland-based doctor and scientist Megan Rossi has some helpful advice to help uncover the secrets of nutrition labels.
Also known as 'The Gut Health Doctor' on social media, she's created a 'Food Detective' series on Instagram to help inform consumers about making smarter, healthier decisions when grocery shopping.
'This time, we're helping you to avoid ultra-processed food by looking at the numbers,' Dr Rossi said.
'This will empower you to get savvy in the supermarket.'
In her latest video, Dr Rossi explained that if you're in a hurry and just want a quick look at what a product contains, the first thing you should do is check the list of ingredients.
According to Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), manufacturers are required to list the ingredients in a specific order. They have to list the ingredients in descending order based on how much of each ingredient they put into the food.
That means that the first ingredient you see on the list is the one that's used in the largest amount, while the last ingredient listed is used in the smallest amount.
For example, imagine you're looking at a package of cookies, and the first ingredient on the list is sugar. That's a clear sign that the cookies have a whole lot of sugar in them. The further down the list you go, the less of that ingredient you'll find.
So if you're looking for a product with healthy ingredients like oats, for example, you want to see it as close to the top of the list as possible.
With that said, Dr Rossi's next advice is to pay close attention to the top three ingredients. It's best to ensure that these come from whole foods to reduce the proportion of the product that comes from refined and ultra-processed ingredients.
Dr Rossi's last advice is to always be aware of portion size. Many manufacturers market foods as 'low-calorie', 'low-salt' or 'low-sugar', but these are often based on realistically unachievable portion sizes.
'It's marketers' favourite trick, so check the grams you would actually eat,' she explained. So before you make a purchase, it's essential to check the actual portion size. That way, you're not misled into consuming far more than you initially expected.
We hope this advice by Dr Rossi helps you make smarter, healthier choices, members! We know it can be quite hard to navigate food labels, but if you take the informative and helpful advice above into consideration, you won't end up with a surprise!
Do you have other tips and advice for making healthier choices in the supermarket? Leave them in the comments below!
Also known as 'The Gut Health Doctor' on social media, she's created a 'Food Detective' series on Instagram to help inform consumers about making smarter, healthier decisions when grocery shopping.
'This time, we're helping you to avoid ultra-processed food by looking at the numbers,' Dr Rossi said.
'This will empower you to get savvy in the supermarket.'
Food labels can often be confusing to read, but a doctor has detailed three things you should actually look out for in a product. Credit: Shutterstock.
In her latest video, Dr Rossi explained that if you're in a hurry and just want a quick look at what a product contains, the first thing you should do is check the list of ingredients.
According to Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), manufacturers are required to list the ingredients in a specific order. They have to list the ingredients in descending order based on how much of each ingredient they put into the food.
That means that the first ingredient you see on the list is the one that's used in the largest amount, while the last ingredient listed is used in the smallest amount.
For example, imagine you're looking at a package of cookies, and the first ingredient on the list is sugar. That's a clear sign that the cookies have a whole lot of sugar in them. The further down the list you go, the less of that ingredient you'll find.
So if you're looking for a product with healthy ingredients like oats, for example, you want to see it as close to the top of the list as possible.
With that said, Dr Rossi's next advice is to pay close attention to the top three ingredients. It's best to ensure that these come from whole foods to reduce the proportion of the product that comes from refined and ultra-processed ingredients.
Dr Rossi's last advice is to always be aware of portion size. Many manufacturers market foods as 'low-calorie', 'low-salt' or 'low-sugar', but these are often based on realistically unachievable portion sizes.
'It's marketers' favourite trick, so check the grams you would actually eat,' she explained. So before you make a purchase, it's essential to check the actual portion size. That way, you're not misled into consuming far more than you initially expected.
We hope this advice by Dr Rossi helps you make smarter, healthier choices, members! We know it can be quite hard to navigate food labels, but if you take the informative and helpful advice above into consideration, you won't end up with a surprise!
Do you have other tips and advice for making healthier choices in the supermarket? Leave them in the comments below!
