5 Things Food Manufacturers Do Not Want You To Know
September 15, 2017
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By Kristen Ziesmer, MS, RD, CSSD, LD
Sports Dietitian, ACE-Certified Personal Trainer
Sports Dietitian, ACE-Certified Personal Trainer
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Food corporations and manufacturers all have one common goal: To get as much money from you as possible. I am here to make sure you get the best out of your money while still making healthy food choices. Below is a short list of ways to not be fooled by these corporations!
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1: Junk food advertisers spend billions of dollars annually, to market high-calorie and low nutrient-dense snacks to children.
Every year on average, children see up to 5,000 food-related television commercials. Watching television does not make children fat, although they do not expend many calories doing this. While children watch television, they are constantly being bombarded with commercials they do not understand about unhealthy snacks with their favorite superhero on it, which may lead children to make unhealthy food choices. To remedy this, cut down television time to 30 minutes a day and spend the rest of the time outdoors or doing something active like assisting with cooking a healthy dinner!
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2: Do not be fooled by health claims on food labels.
“All-natural” or “No trans-fat” can be misleading. Dirt is an “all-natural” ingredient, but just because it is natural does not make it healthy to consume. Also, the words “No trans-fat” are thrown onto a variety of products that never contained trans-fat in the first place. Pay attention to food labels and stick to whole foods which comes straight from the ground, like fresh fruits and vegetables.
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3. Yogurt, a food product most people consider healthy, can actually be loaded with extra sugar and artificial sweeteners to make them taste better.
TheHuffingtonPost.com put out an article explaining this, claiming Yoplait’s original strawberry, Dannon’s fruit on the bottom, All-Natural Brown Cow non-fat Vanilla and Activia yogurts all contain more sugar than a Twinkie. When grocery shopping, opt for plain yogurt and add your own fresh fruit to naturally sweeten it.
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4. Processed foods with dye and artificial flavoring could increase hyperactivity for children with ADHD.
Although there is not a clear link for these being the overall cause of ADHD, a 2007 study done by the United Kingdom’s Food Standards Agency showed a raise in hyperactivity in children aged 3, 8 and 9 after consuming processed foods. Again, choose foods that come straight from the ground.
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5. Fast Food salads have just as many calories as burgers and sandwiches.
When trying to make healthier food choices, most people tend to turn to a salad. Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Cesar Salad has 780 calories which is more than a junior cheeseburger at 360 calories! Also, at The Burger King, their salad has 680 calories, which equals out to their Whopper with cheese! To help lower the calories, stick to grilled instead of fried toppings along with cutting out the dressing. If you can, bring your favorite low calorie dressing or just enjoy the salad without it.
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Do you hate being fooled at the grocery store just as much as I do? Want to learn more? Join me for my upcoming Grocery Store Tour: “Shopping for a Healthy Weight Loss” on Saturday, 9/16/17 at 9 am at Publix on Rosewood! Click here to learn more and sign up!
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