Label
Lies
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| Due
to the lack of public awareness, deceitful food manufacturers
have been making false labeling claims since the 1890’s.
The following are some examples of how food manufacturers
show a sense of dishonesty towards their loyal customers. |
“trans
Fat Free" Buttery Spread |
There are many companies
that have the words “No Trans Fats” or
“Trans Fat Free” in big fancy letters
on the front label of their product. They are obviously
trying to tell people that trans fats are not good
for humans to eat as a healthy food. However, if you
spin the package around and check the ingredient label
on the back, you may still find “partially hydrogenated
fat” listed. This is because companies take
advantage of lackadaisical food labeling laws that
say you can call your product “free” of
something if it contains less than a half a gram per
serving. If you make the serving size small enough,
you can call anything trans fat free! |
 |
| Ingredients:
Vegetable
oil, water, partially
hydrogenated soybean oil, whey, salt,
soy lecithin, potassium sorbate, citric acid, artificial
flavor, vitamin A, colored with beta carotene. |
Manipulating
the Serving Size |
By
lowering the serving size on the honey nut version,
the cereal manufacturer is able to show comparable amounts
of carbohydrates without shying people away.
If this cereal had the correct serving size listed,
the total amount of carbohydrates would state 30 grams. |
"Sugar
Free" does not mean "Carbohydrate free"
Although sugar alcohols
are classified as a carbohydrate, food manufacturers
do not consider them to be a carbohydrates on a food
label. The following is an example of a “sugar-free”
candy bar that replaces sugar with the sugar alcohols
isomalt and maltitol. The type of carbohydrate contained
in this candy bar, polydextrose, is an extremely fast
absorbing carbohydrate. Since polydextrose is not a
“simple” sugar (one or two units of sugar),
this another reason to call the product “sugar
free.”
“SUGAR FREE”
NUTRITION BARS
Ingredients: Isomalt,
maltitol, roasted peanuts, cocoa butter, chocolate,
partially defatted peanut flour, vegetable oil (palm
kernel and hydrogenated palm), polyglycitol syrup, sodium
caseinate, and less than 2% or milkfat, peanut oil,
soy lecithin, egg whites, dl-alpha tocopherol acetate
(to preserve freshness), glycerin, polydextrose, mono-and
diglycerides, salt, butter, corn syrup solids, modified
food starch, guar gum, artificial and natural flavors,
TBHQ and citric acid (to preserve freshness), sucralose,
caramel color.
Maltitol (2.1 calories per gram): Maltitol
is made by the hydrogenation (chemical manipulation)
of maltose (a simple sugar). Maltitol is used in sweet
foods including sugarless hard candies, ice creams,
chewing gum, and chocolate.
Isomalt (2 calories per gram): Isolmalt
is a sugar alcohol that is manufactured from table sugar
and often found in candy, cough drops, lollipops, and
wafers. Isomalt is only partially digested by humans
and the rest is metabolized by the bacteria in the large
intestines, which contributes to gas and watery bowels. |
“SUGAR
FREE” RASPBERRY PRESERVES
The manufacturer of
sugar-free raspberry preserves replaces the simple
sugars with complex carbohydrates like polydextrose
and maltodextrine. Since these carbohydrates are longer
than 2 glucose units, they are not considered a type
of “sugar.” This can be misleading due
to the fact these sugars absorb much faster than fructose,
which is one of the naturally occurring sugars contained
in raspberries. Polydextrose and maltodextrine are
easily broken apart by the digestive system into pure
glucose which rapidly absorbs into the bloodstream.
The primary relevance carbohydrates have in regards
to human nutrition is not the type of sugar, but the
rate by which they absorb into the bloodstream (i.e.
glycemic index). |
 |
Ingredients:
Water, raspberry preserves, polydextrose, maltodextrine,
fruit pectin, locus bean gum, natural flavor, citric
acid, aspartame, potassium sorbate, calcium chloride,
red # 40, blue # 1.
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