Meal Plan Program

To be honest, the food labels are there for only one purpose, and one purpose only - to sell you the food! It is desinged to be very tricky.

We all have seen words like "zero trans fat, heart healthy, low sugar, no impact carbs" on our food labels in predominant size, but does that means the company cares about your bottom? Not a bit, those are designed for their bottom lines!

An example depicts the best story for us to understand what it really means. Let's try:

1. Kellog's Smart Start Strong Heart Antioxidants. Sounds fantastic, right?
We know breakfast is important, so now you're "starting smart." Of course we all want strong hearts...got that. And antioxidants are wonderful for us, right? Well what more do we need? Apparently they thought we needed sugar too -- since there is more sugar in 1 cup of this cereal than 1 cup of Frosted Flakes!! And not just more, but nearly double the amount (14 g vs. 8 g). Now, granted, it also has 3 times the fiber, so it gets a thumbs up for that.

But who would think a cereal with an amazing title like Smart Start Strong Heart Antioxidants has more sugar than a cereal with that tells you it's frosted right in the title? Here are two better cereal options: 1. whole rolled oats and 2. oat bran. Both have no sugar, are loaded with fiber, and are much less expensive than other packaged cereals with fancy marketing attached. And another hint: if there's a cartoon on the box, leave it on the shelf!

2. Starbucks No Sugar Added Banana Nut Coffee Cake. Now, c'mon, I know you didn't think this one was healthy--it's coffee cake. But you can't tell me there wasn't a glimmer of hope with the "no sugar added" preface, right? Sure, it's "healthy" alright -- 480 calories and 28 grams of fat healthy! To replace the sugar, they also added a WHOPPING 36 grams of sugar alcohols, which might have a very unpleasant side effect on the 'ol GI system, if you know what we're saying. Of course no one would go into Starbucks without a mocha, cream covered, super frothy double grande bla bla bla, right? Put the two of those together and you just got over 1000 calories of junky fat and even worse carbohydrates!

3. KFC trans fat free fried chicken. Alright, alright--now we're preaching to the choir (hopefully). KFC has followed the rest of America and taken trans fat out of their foods. You know what--it's still FRIED CHICKEN! Eating trans fat free fried chicken is like switching seats on the Titanic--either way, you're in trouble! But I have had many consumers ask me if this is OK more frequently because they took the trans fat out. It's confusing for consumers and companies love that!

While we're on the topic of trans fat, here's a question that comes up all the time. How can a food package say 0 trans fat when in fact it lists hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated on the ingredient list? Because it has less than 0.5 g per serving (which means as soon as you eat more than that, you're getting trans fat).

The easiest way to avoid trans fat and other junky ingredients is to buy foods that don't have ingredients meaning foods that are not packaged! Fruits and vegetables don't come in packages. Fish, chicken, meat do not come in packages (now, yes, of course they CAN, but in general). That will ensure you're making the best decisions. And if a food does have a label, aim for as few ingredients as possible--let's say, less than 5.

Just as an FYI, Pop Tarts have OVER 50 ingredients! If you want truly want to take control of your health, check out Meal Plans 101 where we show you the exact strategies to be healthier and lose fat, such as:

· The correct amount of calories to eat,
· The nutrient ratios that work best for you,
· Plenty of variey so you don't get bored with your meals,
· And much much more