Reading nutrition labels is more than just looking at the calories, carbs, fats, and protein. This is some advanced, FBI-type $#!t!! In this post, I get down to the nitty-gritty when looking at nutrition labels and buying packaged foods.
In this post I will explain:
The 2 things I look at when it comes to a nutrition label are, added sugar and the ingredients. If I know what's in the ingredients I can usually tell what the rest of the label will say. But even if I approve of the ingredients, I like to keep an eye on my sugar intake because excess sugar leads to poor microbiome health, cravings, and disease.
Since I am an intuitive eater, I don't look at calories, protein, fat, and carbs. I know I get enough of my macros through my fruits, vegetables, high-quality meats, nuts, etc. And I know when I need to make adjustments based on my cravings and fullness. But this isn't to say that I avoid packaged foods either. When I buy packaged foods, like bread, condiments, supplements, drinks, and snacks, I am making sure there are no vegetable oil, corn syrup, added sugar, soy fillers, synthetic preservatives, acids, artificial flavors, natural flavors, or other words I can't pronounce. Why? Because these ingredients are toxic to the body and cause disease (more info below).
But I am also not neurotic about it because sometimes these ingredients are unavoidable. That's why I make sure the majority of my diet has whole, nourishing, and detoxifying foods.
Nutrition Facts: The Basics
Before looking at the numbers, look at the serving size at the top. The numbers are based on the serving size, not the whole container.
Trans fat is something you want to avoid, BUT even though it says 0g trans fat, there can still be trans fat in the product. I'll explain that later.
Sodium is something you want to avoid in EXCESS. If the sodium is high for the product, that means they're using sodium as a preservative so it can have a longer shelf life. Sodium (Na) is different that salt (NaCl) so limit Na not NaCl.
Fiber is good, but what type of fiber? Is it synthetic or from a vegetable? This is where you want to look at the ingredient list. If it's more than 20g, it most likely has a synthetic fiber additive.
Total sugars and added sugars are something you should be cognizant about. Added sugar specifically means sugar that was added to the product, not naturally occurring in the product. Excess sugar is a toxin and leads to many diseases and disorders such as weight gain, aging, inflammation, liver problems, tooth decay, fatigue and irritability, brain damage, poor immunity, and heart problems. You want to make sure you are eating <40 g of added sugar a day, so I suggest you look at this macro on the label. I talk more about sugar here.
The vitamins and minerals at the bottom are good to know, but it's even better to know where they came from. Synthetic or from food?
My 2 cents on calories and macros
Sure, you can count calories and macros for short-term muscle-building or fat loss goals, but YOU DON'T HAVE TO. Your health journey should be less about restricting and more about swapping. When you swap processed foods with whole foods, your body will notice and do the hard work for you. You don't have to be neurotic about what you eat and what you don't. Rather, be consistent with eating higher quality, nutrient-dense foods. Then you won't even have to look at nutrition labels because most whole foods don't have one!! It's just one ingredient! Kale is kale. A potato is a potato. When you change your perspective from eating to look skinny to eating for nourishment, your whole life will change.
Calories
At the end of the day, it's the quality of the calories for me, not the quantity. For example, 100 calories of Doritos is not the same as 100 calories of broccoli. You can glance at the calories but they aren't the main attraction. You should avoid food based on its nourishment value not based on its calorie value.
Protein
Most healthy adults should eat at least 100g of protein per day. So, if you want to glance at the protein value to see if you are eating enough, I support that. But, your main protein source should be from high-quality meats, dairy, nuts, beans, and legumes.
Carbohydrates
Carbs are often looked at as the bad guys, which can be true. Simple carbs are immediately converted into glucose in the blood, and we all know what too much glucose in the blood causes... But we can counteract this by stacking carbs with protein and fat to avoid a severe glucose spike. Or you can go for a long walk or do some light exercise, drink apple cider vinegar, or add Ceylon cinnamon after a high-carb meal as a natural blood sugar balancer. But the main source of carbs should come from starchy, complex carbs such as potatoes, beans, corn, peas, barley, wheat, and rye.
Fats
Fats are also seen as the bad guy but when it comes to high-quality fat, avocado, olive oil, salmon, pasture-raised eggs, etc., fat is your best friend. Fat is essential for brain and cellular health. You're asking for systemic inflammation, weak cell membranes, and chronic disease when it comes to crappy fat, vegetable oils, trans fats found in french fries, donuts, and most packaged food.
Don't fall for the 'healthy' labels
Sugar-free
Sugar-free usually just means free of table sugar (sucrose) but not chemically modified sugar... They have to keep the product sweet somehow, so they substitute table sugar with sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners such as acesulfame potassium, saccharin, aspartame, and sucralose.
Chemically modified sugars such as maltodextrin, found in "sugar-free" foods, are manipulated in a lab to make them easier to digest allowing it to still spike insulin levels in a similar way to pure sugar. More on a chemically modified sugar below.
Fat-free
This label tricks you into thinking: if you don't eat fat, you won't get fat. But this is absolutely and fundamentally wrong. Our cells, brain, and most of our body are composed of fat and we get that fat directly from our diet. A large scientific review published in 2013 found that low-fat diets tend to increase triglycerides and decrease HDL (good cholesterol). These two factors put you at a bigger risk for heart disease. Not to mention to make a product low fat, they have to add fat fillers such as corn syrup solids, sugar, pea protein, and fully hydrogenated oils.
Trans fat-free
Now trans fat IS something you want to avoid. The FDA finally banned partially hydrogenated oils from our food (the main source of trans fat) but this should have never entered our food system, to begin with. These oils are strongly correlated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. But the FDA shouldn't stop here there are still hidden sources of trans fats, such as mono- and di-glycerides. These are additives common in bread and they're converted in the body to triglycerides (associated with heart disease). And these aren't required to be labeled as trans fat on food labels, so you are still eating tans fats even in trans fat-free foods.
Gluten-free
Gluten is not always the enemy. Only a small percentage of the population (7-8%) can't properly digest this protein which occurs naturally in wheat, barley, and rye. The term gluten-free has generated two big lies: 1. Eliminating gluten in your diet will help you lose weight and 2. Gluten-free is healthier. Gluten-free is a diet that is only needed for someone with a diagnosis, blood test verified, celiac disease, or people with gluten sensitivities and allergies. So this means most of the people buying gluten-free (billion dollar industry) don't have to. The reason people might lose weight from going "gluten-free" is because they stopped eating all the processed foods that have gluten in them (refined bread, cereal, crackers, pizza, fried foods, etc). And yes, decreasing processed food consumption is linked to weight loss. Anyway, gluten-free foods have extra additives such as tapioca starch, rice starch, rice flour, brown rice syrup, corn, soy fillers, added sugar, and xantham gum which aren't any better for your GI tract than actual gluten. Gluten-containing whole foods can be packed with nutritional benefits and can lead to deficiencies if eliminated.
Natural flavors
Natural flavor means they extracted flavors from real food. BUT to do this, they use unsafe chemicals solvents. Natural flavors can contain upward of 100 different chemicals like propylene glycol, polysorbate 80, BHT, BHA, etc. (many of these chemicals are linked to cancer and are banned in other countries) that strip everything else from the food except the flavor. This is considered safe by the FDA because they process the food AGAIN to remove the chemical solvents from the extract. The FDA doesn't require companies to tell you what is in the flavors they use, so you really don't know what's in them.
Additionally, the terms, "pure" and "all-natural," are not regulated by the FDA and can be slapped onto any packaged product so be careful buying products with these labels.
The only label I want to see on the front of the box is USDA Organic & Non-GMO Project VERIFIED.
Ingredients, ingredients, ingredients
Like I stated early, ingredients are the main thing I look at because they tell me WHAT I'M ACTUALLY EATING.
Once you start looking at the ingredients, even in ‘healthy’ products, and especially in fitness products, you’ll be shocked to see all the toxic additives. Some are listed below.
Common toxic ingredients to AVOID
From the national bestseller, Feeding You Lies: How to Unravel the Food Industry's Playbook and Reclaim Your Health by Vani Hari.
Vegetable oils
Soybean oil, canola oil, palm oil, corn oil (the main four), cottonseed oil, sunflower oil, rice bran oil, rapeseed oil, and safflower oil.
These seed oils are highly industrialized, processed at high temps, refined, bleached, and DEODORIZED before consumption.. so chemically altered, they can change your DNA and damage cells... read more about toxic vegetable oils here.
They are found in just about every packaged food including non-dairy milk.
Artificial flavors/sweeteners
Sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, erythritol, monosodium glutamate, neotame, stevia extract, vanillin
Synthetic flavors are made from proprietary chemicals that can encourage sugar craving and sugar dependence and are linked to weight gain.
Commonly found in chewing gum, diet soda, yogurt, fruit cups, and sugar-free products.
Artificial dyes
Natural flavors
Mentioned above
Corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup
Heavily processed sugar is typically made from genetically modified (GMO) corn that produces its insecticide.
Found in sauces, crackers, desserts, and pancake syrup
Enriched and bleached flour
Processed and bleached, with synthetic vitamins and minerals additives
This process destroys nutrients such as vitamin E and fiber and has no nutritional value so they have to add nutrients back in.
Found in bread, buns, and other baked goods
Synthetic preservatives
BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole), BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene), propylparaben, methylparaben, propyl gallate, sodium benzoate, sodium nitrate/nitrite, sodium phosphate, TBHQ (tert-butylhydroquinone)
Most are endocrine disrupters and linked to cancer and tumors in animal studies.
Found in deli meat, sausage, pepperoni, canned soup, boxed potatoes, potato chips, drink mixes, chewing gum, cereal, packaged nuts, tortillas, desserts, soft drinks, pickles, salad dressings, and more.
Citric acid and malic acid
Preservative and flavor
Naturally found in lemons and other fruits, the additive used in packaged foods is typically derived from a mold made with GMO corn.
Found in juice, bottled ice tea, energy drinks, baby food, candy, and fitness products
Partially hydrogenated oils
Artificial trans fat typically made with GMO soybean, cottonseed, or canola oil
Strongly correlated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Banned by the FDA but food companies can still petition the FDA for a special permit to continue using them.
Found in JIF peanut butter, frosting, nondairy creamers, cookies, and crackers.
Soy fillers
Soy protein isolate, soy lechtin
A heavily processed protein supplement that is refined by the removal of fiber, fat, and nutrients
Can cause hormonal disruptions and inhibits calcium absorption due to its abundance in phytic acid.
Found in protein powder, shakes, and bars, veggie burgers, and frozen meals
Gums
Gellan gum, locust bean gum, and guar gum (thickeners)
Known to cause stomach issues such as bloating and gas
Found in dairy and non-dairy milk and products (If dairy gives you GI problems, it might not be the dairy itself, but the additives in the dairy)
Maltodextrin
Heavily processed starch, filler, preservative, and sweetener
Mentioned above
Mono-glycerides and di-glycerides
Artificial trans fat derivatives made from vegetable oil byproducts
Correlated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Can still be contained in foods labeled 0g trans fat because they are considered 'emulsifiers' not lipids by the FDA.
Found in bread, tortillas, ice cream, margarine, peanut butter, and non-dairy creamer
Cellulose
Usually made from wood (because it's cheaper) not from fruit/vegetables where cellulose naturally occurring
Linked to weight gain, inflammation, and digestive problems.
Found in shredded cheese, spice mixes, pancake syrup, and foods labeled as "high fiber"
Azodicarbonamide
The main chemical in yoga mats. According to the WHO, it is linked to respiratory issues, allergies, and asthma. When baked in bread, it is linked to tumor development and cancer. This chemical is banned in Europe and Australia.
Found in sandwich bread, buns, rolls, and other baked goods
Calcium peroxide
Bleach and dough conditioner. Banned from Europe and some stores such as Whole Foods.
Found in croutons, sandwich bread, and other baked goods
Calcium propionate
Mold inhibitors are linked to irritability, restlessness, inattention, and sleep disturbance in some children. Long-term consumption is linked to damage to the stomach lining and induces ulcers.
Found in croutons, sandwich bread, and other baked goods
Dimethylpolysiloxane
The main ingredient in silly putty, a defoaming agent
The FDA allows it to be preserved with formaldehyde (an embalming chemical)
Found in french fries, deep-fried foods, yogurt, fountain drinks, and phase oil (a butter substitute found in some restaurants)
That being said-
If you have food sensitivities, it is mostly like due to the additives in the food, not the actual food. And if you think, Well, these additives are so minimal, like <2% of the whole product. Well, guess what! That 2% adds up!! Say you eat/drink 10 things a day that are packaged with 2% toxins.
For example:
You have some ~canola oil-laced~ Oatly oat milk in your morning coffee, ~hydrogenated oil-laced~ Jif peanut butter on honey wheat bread laced with ~mono- and di-glycerides~, with sugar-free ketchup with ~artificial sugar alcohols~ on top of your eggs (which were cooked with PAM ~canola oil~ cooking spray) for breakfast
Some non-organic greek yogurt with more ~sugar alcohols~, with mixed nuts that were roasted in ~sunflower oil~ for a snack
You have your pre-workout that's laced with ~synthetic preservatives, citric acid, and natural flavors~
Then for dinner, you have chicken with ~corn syrup~ BBQ sauce and gluten-free pasta with ~gums, rice starch, and soy/corn fillers~
IT ADDS UP.
This is why I am so adamant about eating WHOLE FOODS and limiting ALL packaged foods!!! This post just scratches the surface of our current food system. And if you think this is bad, imagine what's in our self-care and hygiene products...
I highly recommend you read the books in my references and stay informed on how to avoid toxic food additives by subscribing to my blog and following me on IG!
Thanks for reading :) <3
References
Greenfield, B. (2020). Boundless upgrade your brain, optimize your body & defy aging. Victory Belt Publishing Inc.
Hari, V. (2020). Feeding you lies: How to unravel the food industry's playbook and reclaim your health. Hay House Australia.
Hyman, M. (2018). Food: What the heck should I eat? Little, Brown and Company.
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