Ever been confused by the different information on a food label? You’re not alone!

But using a few little tricks, you can assess which foods are fine to consume regularly and which are an occasional treat.

Check the order of the ingredient list: An ingredient list will be listed in descending order. The first ingredient is present in the greatest amount, and the last ingredient is found in the least amount.

Whenever possible, aim for wholefoods as at least the top 2-3 ingredients. You certainly don’t want anything like sugar or syrup in those first few ingredients!

For example, on this food label for a popular barbeque sauce, you will notice that the most abundant ingredient is tomatoes followed by sugar, then water, thickeners etc. The least amount of ingredient is onion.

Minimise additives and numbers: The more processed a food is, the more likely it is to have multiple additives. Additives can include preservatives, sweeteners, colours, flavours, stabilisers, emulsifiers… the list goes on. Sometimes they will be listed as a chemical name such as sodium nitrite, an additive used in processed meats and gives it the characteristic pink colour (e.g. ham) and sometimes listed simply as its 3-digit number 250.

Some additives are harmless, so don’t panic over any food that has one or two additives. But it’s best to avoid the foods that have more additives than food ingredients you recognise!

For a complete list of food additives and ingredients that may best be avoided, download the app: https://chemicalmaze.com/product/chemical-maze-complete-edition/

If in doubt, aim for 5 ingredients or less: Foods that have dozens of ingredients are usually highly processed, making them less than ideal.  There are a few exceptions to the rule, but if you follow it at least 80% of the time, you’ll minimise your intake of additives and other nasties.

Figure out the percentage: Want an easy way to figure out the percentage of macronutrients? This is where the nutritional panel can come in handy.

Locate the per 100g or per 100ml column. This will tell you the percentage of each nutrient. So, if it’s 30g of sugar per 100g, it’s 30% sugar! In most cases I would look for 10% or less sugar and keep it all to a minimum.

Knowing what is in food is only the first step. Knowing what’s right for your body is the key. If you want to know more, come and chat to our friendly pharmacist or naturopath.