Only some of us are cautious while buying products from supermarkets and grocery stores. People generally check the date of manufacturing and the date of expiry on the food labels. Some people just read about ingredients. At the same time, others restricted up to calories per 100 gm. Is this enough to check ingredients and calories? Are there other factors to be checked before buying canned foods? Yes, there are factors we should be reading on food labels before buying foods. This article will look at what should be read carefully on food labels before purchasing any food.

What People Generally Read?

We all know that price is the prime factor on food labels. People do not go through all the labels on the food. The price matters the most to most people but may not be the most important thing to consider. We should check the nutrition and other factors too. It depends upon what food you buy. Suppose you are purchasing food like cookies or cakes. You must read the ingredients and the dates of manufacturing, and the expiry date, calories, fats, etc. But when it comes to canned foods or supplementary products. You need to be careful about the label on the foods too. The description of the food should be read carefully before buying them. 

Why Should You Careful About Food Labels? 

The foods made under the industrial process are not authentic as we consider. The food industries add artificial ingredients to foods that you are not aware of. The processed foods are manufactured with ingredients like Sodium, Artificial Coloring, Flavorings, Fibers, Vitamins, etc. There are other factors we should consider before buying food.

Why Should You Avoid Some Foods?

There are some foods you must avoid, like added potassium. People even do not think adding Potassium in nutrition products is unusual. But the manufacturing process uses ingredients like Potassium. The natural foods we consume like Bananas, Sweet Potatoes have Potassium. Still, there is a vast difference between processed foods and natural foods. Too much potassium in your blood may cause health problems and worsen heart-related issues.

Government Authorities and Processed Foods:

You may question if some artificial ingredients are not suitable for health, why don’t the Food Authority ban them? Yes, there are some ingredients prohibited, but others are completely legal. You might have read some food labels mentioning that you need to keep away from children below 5 years old. Other products are not suitable for pregnant women. Such warnings are provided on the labels because not every product is ideal for everyone. Suppose you are a diabetes patient, then you can not consume cookies made for general people. The standard cookies have sugar, which is suitable for healthy people. In such a manner, there are ingredients used in the manufacturing of processed foods but strict control. The authorities have made it mandatory to highlight the elements and other information related to the foods. But it is your responsibility as a consumer to read the labels before buying them. At least the authorities expect that people will read the labels carefully. 

What Should be Avoided?

When you read labels printed on the foods, you must be careful about the ingredients mentioned as following:

#1. Artificial Sugar Added:

Suppose you buy a fruit juice, then try to avoid the juices added with artificial sugars. It is relatively safe to drink juice that contains artificial sugar sparingly, but if you regularly consume such juices with artificial sugars, avoid them, mainly if you have diabetes problems. There are plenty of fruit juice products available in the market with no additional sugar added.

#2. Additional Flavoring:

Artificial flavoring is the ingredient that gives a particular flavor to the product. Such flavors are nothing but chemicals that bring the artificial flavor to the product. Artificial flavoring is used in some edible products like chocolate bars, cakes, candies. Consuming such flavors means consuming chemicals. Suppose you consume food with artificial strawberry flavor it means the food has a chemical taste and smells like Strawberry. 

#3. Monosodium Glutamate (MSG):

Savory foods occasionally have added MSG. It is generally used in foods like cookies or chips for taste. The use of MSG is the most active topic for discussion. There is a control over its use in edible products. But it is always better to avoid such foods. 

#4. Sodium Nitrite:

Sodium Nitrite is the best for preservation. The processed meats are with such ingredients. Suppose you buy a processed meat product, then be aware of it. 

#5. CO2:

You may see the bubbles coming out of the soft drinks, which are nothing but CO2 that causes harm to your health. Soft drinks are unharmful only if you drink occasionally. There are a few quiet drinks that do not contain CO2. It causes damage if you consume more frequently such drinks that contain CO2.

These are such ingredients you shall try to avoid. Healthy people are not required to be worried about such elements. But if you are consuming such products frequently, then it can harm you.

Food Labels and Readability:

You may find it challenging to understand the ingredients and sciences behind them, but you should at least be cautious of other factors. The food label provides plenty of information about the products. You can read the uses and cautions at least. The Food Authority has strictly warned the manufacturers to print the consequences and warnings about the products. Other things like fats and calories are generally read before buying, but sometimes well-known things like fibers must be checked. Some foods have a massive amount of fats. Therefore as a buyer, you should spend some time reading before adding edible products to your cart. The labels are not designed to be difficult to read. Labels on foods are intended to be read easily and quickly; therefore, we have to read the labels as consumers.

In this article, we introduced you to some ingredients to be avoided. They are not that harmful to your body, but they are if you are regularly consuming such foods. Especially when you are diagnosed with diseases, it becomes crucial to read the labels. The labels are for our information; therefore, it is our duty to read them before buying food. Suppose you buy a gadget, furniture without reading the labels like material used and quality of the product; it will lead you to lose some dollars. But blindly purchasing edibles will cost your health that you won’t afford. After all, health is wealth.