Many a times when you are on a healthy streak, you get attracted to those catchy advertisements that claim their products to be the healthiest of all. Well, it’s time for a reality check as the market is literally flooded with dozens of these supposedly “healthy” options which on taking a closer look turn out to be the exact opposite.
For example, we all know that yogurt is a superfood, but add artificial flavouring agents and sweeteners and you might as well be eating junk food. Worried about how to distinguish the genuine products from the pretenders? Cast all worries aside as we have done the research for you and identified markers that will help you pick the right products:
1.Cereals
Cereals are mostly considered to be the best breakfast alternative. Often associated with weight management and low-calorie diets, these cereals are actually loaded with sugars and refined carbohydrates. All these extra sugars and carbs not only lead to overeating but a gradual weight gain too. Most breakfast cereals are not marketed ethically.
So don’t forget to check the ingredients list for whole grains, at least 3 grams of fibre per serving and less than 10 grams of sugar before you pick one.
2.Packaged Juices
Juices being a fancy companion to your meals are often claimed to be the healthiest beverage. But in reality, packaged juices are mostly sugar and water with added flavors. Fewer vitamins and minerals, more on the sugars, these juices are a big no for sipping in between the meals. What you are drinking isn’t actually a fruit but simply chemicals that taste like fruit and sugar water.
You should rather go for fresh fruit juices or the fruit itself.
3.Low-Fat Yoghurt
Low-Fat yoghurts indeed contains less of fats as compared to regular dairy yoghurt but these are as high in sugar as any dessert. Sugars are added to these in order to compensate for the natural taste of the fats present in the regular yoghurt and the extra flavour is nothing but just the added chemicals. So plain yogurt has a thumbs up, but flavoured ones, not so much.
4.Whole Wheat Bread
Whole Wheat Bread is not as healthy as it is supposed to be and substituting the conventional white bread with it is not as smart as we think it is. Whole Wheat Bread is made of wheat that is pulverized into a very fine flour and this doesn’t keep the natural properties of wheat intact.
So if you really want a 100% healthy bread, see to it that it’s 100% whole wheat made and that too at the top of the ingredient list.
5.Salad Dressing
Most of us today are into salad-diets for managing weight and health. Despite being healthy, salads are often bland. To keep a balance between taste and health, people use salad dressings to turn their not so tasty salads into delicious treats. But most of the salad dressings in stores today are a blend of unhealthy ingredients. They are loaded with sugars, vegetable oils, trans-fats along with a bunch of artificial chemicals.
In short, using salad dressings might negate the actual goodness of your healthy veggies. Rather replace it with a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt.
6.Energy Drinks
Energy drinks have gained enormous popularity among youngsters lately. However, these drinks were designed keeping in mind the professions that involved excessive and continuous physical effort such as of a sports person, athlete etc. Energy Drinks contain salts, sugars and even alcohol which are not really needed by most people on a regular basis.
Albeit, not considered as bad as regular soft-drinks yet they certainly are bad for your health. So either go for drinks that have low or no sugar and alcohol content or substitute them with smoothies or green tea.
7.Cholesterol Lowering Foods
Cholesterol, being a major health concern today, brings quite an opportunity for marketers seeking a health conscious group of potential consumers. However, foods labeled as “cholesterol-lowering” may not actually do what they say. In these, the cholesterol is replaced by a nutrient called phytosterols (a plant version of cholesterol) that claim to lower the level of bad cholesterol. However, these phytosterols impact the cardiovascular system adversely, leaving people prone to heart risks.
It is therefore recommended to cut down the foods that contain high amounts of bad cholesterol instead of trying to go for substitutes.
8.Diet Soft Drinks
Diet Soft Drinks or Diet Soda was initially designed and first introduced to people with diabetes but later, because of it being less on calories, Diet Soda was marketed among people trying to shed weight. Diet Soft Drinks are sweetened with artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose, etc. which are much less in calories, unlike the regular soft drinks. Some of them are not even that bit healthy as they contain sugar. They are linked with an increased risk of Type II Diabetes and weight gain.
So, either go for no sugar ones or don’t go for them at all, because anyway, they have zero nutrition.
9.Gluten Free Substitutes
As problematic as it is trendy to talk about in the health industry, Gluten indeed is a substance of high concern. Gluten, found in foods made of wheat (or flour), tends to be extremely bad yet unavoidable. To combat this problem, stores today are flooded with packaged gluten-free substitutes. However, these alternatives are as bad as their gluten-containing counterparts. Such products are highly processed, low in nutrients and often loaded with refined starches.
Instead of commercial gluten-free foods and substitutes, choose foods that are naturally gluten-free.
10.Processed Organic Food
‘Organic’ is just another buzzword for marketers in the Food and Beverage Industry. As much as the food manufacturers claim these foods to be organic, they are actually anything but truly organic. These foods include ingredients like organic raw cane sugar which is completely identical to regular sugar. It is still glucose and fructose with little to no nutrients. In most cases, the nutritional difference between an ingredient and its organic counterpart is next to none.
If you really want to go organic, don’t go for just any cheap brand with an “Organic” label, go for the genuine ones having legit certifications.
Though we know that you might already be feeling deceived after going through the list, you can stop panicking as long as you have your pack of Keeros Multigrain and Multiseed Roasted Snacks on your desk. Artificial flavours, preservatives, unhealthy sugar, you won’t have to worry about any of it with Keeros. With the truth now revealed, all you need to do is to pick your healthy foods wisely and put a full stop to ending up with products that are mere devils in disguise.