With all the emphasis on a healthy lifestyle at the top everyone’s mind these days, it has become difficult for some products to sell because of possible unhealthy content. Now some advertisers have gotten wise and are wording their packaging in almost deceptive ways to make people think they’re healthier than they really are.
Watch out for products that tout the fact that they have reduced sugar content. At first glance it all sounds great, after all it’s reduced sugar, and to much sugar is bad for us. But the problem with some of these products that claim reduced sugar is that they replace that sugar with artificial sweeteners. Look at the label and you may see things like “sucralose” on there. Sucralose is an artificial sweetener. Artificial sweeteners have a lot of negative health effects on your body. Is this product any better because it has artificial sweetener instead of sugar? Maybe not.
Something else to be aware of are all the products that claim to have no trans fats. As we all know, trans fats have been linked to high blood pressure and heart disease. So, a product with zero trans fats should be an excellent choice for the health-conscious consumer, right? The FDA allows products with less than .5 grams of any fat per serving to list as having 0 grams. While it’s not a huge amount, it’s definitely misleading.
Watch out for those products listing natural sweeteners. Again, these products are very deceptive and unless you know what you’re looking at they can be misleading. Something that is listed as natural sweetener may have started out as natural but has been processed, and it’s the processing that makes it bad.
The best thing for the average person who is concerned about what they eat can do is get educated. There are plenty of resources online where you can get information on deceptive packaging.
