“If I don’t bring it into the house I can’t eat it”
The plethora of choices available in the supermarket these days is mind blowing. If you’re feeling confused, then you’re not alone. We can often think we’re buying healthy products but when reading the nutritional information and ingredient list you could be wasting your money. To avoid this here is some information to help the next time you are grocery shopping.
Ingredient list:
The ingredient list on a product is like a recipe – it lists all ingredients that are in the product. It’s important to remember that the ingredients are listed in order from most to least; so, the first ingredient is present in the largest amount and the last ingredient is the smallest amount.
If ‘fat’ is listed in the first 3 ingredients then the product is probably not suitable, for example:
- Ingredient list A: Wheat flour, oil, coconut, shortening, malt, flour – Not suitable
- Ingredient list B: Whole rye flour, bran, malt, oil, salt – Suitable
One of the hero ingredients in any product is fibre. It assists digestion and helps you to feel fuller for longer so is an ideal inclusion in any product, look for it on the ingredient list.
Some ingredients have many different names, take a look at the list below:
Action step
Grab some of the ingredients you have in your pantry and check the labels as you read back through what I have talked about above. You will be more likely to remember it when you’re in the supermarket.