Shocking ingredients in "healthy" foods

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amother

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 10:53 pm

Don't really know where to post this...

Red #40? In VANILLA yogurt? (Machmirim yogurt)
I already avoid strawberry or blueberry yogurts for that reason, but coloring in white yogurt?

What are these companies trying to accomplish? Mehadrin makes it without....

How about corn syrup in corn flakes crumbs?

Can we start a thread like this? Like what to look out for and avoid in certain products that we would think are healthy.

amother

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:04 pm

Anon b/c I complained to a lot of ppl IRL about this:

Food coloring in pickles!?!?!?!

(there are SOME brands without but most do have…)

punchike

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:04 pm

Check every product, I've learned. Those yogurts have so much junk in them. But what about when it says natural flavorings? ...what exactly is that?? What about other stuff you see on health food labels, like- xanthian gum or guar gum? Huh? What are those?

amother

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:05 pm

I was anonymous for same reason!
Yes pickles! But you mean dill pickles, not sour?

mom2dkay

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:07 pm

I noticed "partially hydrogenated oil" in Landau carob rice cakes.

MamaBear

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:12 pm

Well just eating "real foods" eliminates this issue. Other than condiments and pasta and cheese, I just don't buy much processed food.

Xanthan gum and guar gum are binders and necessary for certain foods, especially gluten free foods.

momX4

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:13 pm

My kids know to read labels.
We choose to concentrate on calories, fat and amount of servings in a package. I dont buy yogurt with splenda or corn syrup.

flowerpower

Thu, Nov 21 2013, 11:46 pm

Yes, read every single product you buy!!!!! I learnt that already.

Sparkle

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 1:51 am

I'm constantly pointing out problematic ingredients on labels for "healthy" foods to people. I try to avoid snacks and packaged foods as much as a can. Sometimes it's unavoidable, but for the most part I stick to plain old Real Food. (It's cheaper to skip all those snacks too...)

bamamama

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 2:21 am

Real food. If it comes in a box, expect some **** in it.

Make peace with the **** in your corn flake crumbs or make your own breadcrumbs (or find a brand that doesn't have a bunch of yuck in it). I'm not sure why people think flavoured yogurt is healthy. Regular peanut butter is also not healthy - it's basically peanut flavoured sugar and shortening.

Ruchel

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 6:36 am

Yup. Even "organic" label, etc. Read!

mille

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:04 am

Well, why would you assume something is healthy unless it's a raw fruit or veggie??

There are always buzz words that companies use to sell their product. Fat Free? Sounds healthy, until you see that there's 2x as much sugar as the non-fat-free version (which only has 2g of unsaturated fat for a large serving size, so not a fair trade). Organic doesn't mean nor does it even imply healthy, it simply implies that the produce was grown without the aid of pesticides (and dairy products were from cows that ate organic food).

What are they trying to accomplish? They are trying to sell their product. Years of market research suggests to them that putting certain ingredients in a product will give it a desirable effect (longer shelf life, more attractive product, better taste, or cheaper production with a cheaper ingredient therefore larger profit margin). Most companies don't care about what you personally consider to be healthy. They care about profit, of course! Always read all labels!

Personally, I am much more concerned over the frum world's high consumption of trans fat-filled margarine, rich's whip, and of onion/chicken soup mix than I am about a little bit of red #40 in yogurt!

MaBelleVie

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:07 am

This thread could go on forever. I'll echo everyone else and just say avoid whatever processed food you can, and read labels for the rest.

Simple1

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:15 am

Even fruits and vegetables can be a problem because some have a lot of pesticides. Rice has arsenic.

I think the main thing is to eat a variety so you don't get too much of any one thing. Unhealthy ingredients are more poisonous if you eat it on a constant basis rather than occasionally.

I recently came across a list of fruits and veg that are safe without going organic (low levels of pesticides on them.) You can google it.

morah

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:20 am

I posted similar frustrations awhile back. First, I think most of us were educated to look for things like calories, fat, carbs. While this is not a bad idea, it turns out that there's more to it than that. It's easy to read the nutrition facts label, which is bold and prominently displayed. Not as easy to do the same with those tiny print ingredients. It's not easy to shake the habit of boiling everything down to calories/fat/carbs. And of course, food companies WANT to make it harder for you to make an informed choice, so they slap on meaningless labels like organic (sorry, potato chips are junk no matter what kind of potatoes they use) or fat free. Like others have said, read ingredients, not just nutrition facts,make as much as you can from scratch.

granolamom

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:29 am

morah wrote:

blasphemy!! potato chips count as a vegetable! LOL

seriously, though, you're totally right. what about 'veggie burgers' that are full of TVP? that stuff even shows up in cans of tuna sometimes. the 'texturized vegetable protein' is often made from soy, and its that highly processed soy that gives soy its bad name.

you want to eat something healthy? make it yourself. and as Adelle Davis used to say "if it is spoiled, dont eat it. If it doesnt spoil, dont eat it". the additives that prolong shelf life in cookies, cereals, etc are really bad for you.

MiracleMama

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 9:36 am

Simple1 wrote:

There is the "Dirty Dozen" list that should always be purchased organic because they have the highest amounts of pesticides. Then there is the "Clean Fifteen" which are considered safe to buy non-organic because they are grown with minimal pesticides. I took these lists shopping with me until I memorized them. Very helpful.

gp2.0

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 10:01 am

I laugh sometimes when I read "healthy" recipes too. Making a fruit smoothie - add honey. Um, why? The fruit itself is sweet and tart and perfect!

ChutzPAh

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 10:10 am

High fructose corn syrup in whole wheat bread. Bottom line, you have to read labels!

mommyshani

Fri, Nov 22 2013, 10:12 am

Try making yogurt with a yogurt maker - it is tart at first, and may take a few tries, but if you get it right, just add fruit (and maybe a drop of honey or sugar) and it is delicious without all of the weird stuff in the commercial ones.

Last edited by mommyshani on Fri, Nov 22 2013, 10:29 am; edited 1 time in total

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