Great Health Tip of the Day: Read the Ingredient List
May 23, 2012
Reading the nutrition facts is a great way to determine the healthfulness of different foods. However, one of the areas I feel is often overlooked is the ingredient list. Here are some hints on what to look for and what to limit when reading an ingredient list:
- Look for:
- Whole Grains such as whole wheat, oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice, whole grain rye, whole grain barley, etc…
- Heart-healthy sources of fat such as nuts, seeds and oils such as olive, canola, sunflower or safflower
- Fruits and vegetables
- Legumes
- Limit:
- Added sugars including sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, honey, agave, brown rice syrup, sucrose, fructose, dextrose, maltose and fruit juice concentrate
- Hydrogenated or Partially Hydrogenated oils (these indicate that there is trans fat in a product, even when it is not listed under the nutrition facts)
- Refined grains such as wheat flour, enriched flour, rye flour, degermed cornmeal, and rice
