Food labelled as “healthy” can be deceiving!

This week, a piece in the Daily Mail showed how much sugar is found in so-called “healthy treats”. Whereas the ingredients all look wholesome as they label themselves as raw, grain free, vegan, etc a closer look will reveal that in reality they are all very high in natural sugars. Items such as dates, raisins, raw cane sugar - are ALL sugar!

Hidden Sugars

Hidden sugars are ingredients that have been added to a pre-prepared product to add flavour and texture it but also sugars found naturally in certain foods.

Whilst we are familiar with white granulated sugar as being sugar, we are still unfamiliar with the other names that sugar presents itself in our food.

Here is a list of names that sugar presents itself as in pre-prepared food:

Lactose

Maltose

Fructose

Sucrose

Dextrose

Anhydrous Dextrose

Honey

Inverted Sugar

Raw Sugar

Brown Sugar

Confectioner’s powdered sugar

High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Corn Syrup

Corn Syrup Solids

Malt Syrup

Maple Syrup

Pancake Syrup

White granulated sugar

Molasses

Nectars (eg peach nectar, agave nectar, pear nectar, etc)

It also presents itself naturally in dates and raisins and other naturally occurring fruit.

Chicory Fibre - a better option all round

Chicory Fibre (also known as Fructooligosaccharide [FOS]) is a naturally occurring alternative sweetener. A growing body of evidence continues to show the importance of a healthy gut environment is not only helpful for bowel health but also to enable full absorption of minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, through our gut. Studies into the health benefits of chicory fibre show that it stimulates the growth of beneficial bacteria in the human gut and hence termed as prebiotics.

The use of chicory fibre as a natural sweetener offers satisfaction to one’s sweet tooth whilst avoiding unnecessary sugar and also avoiding blood sugar spikes. It is for this reason that here at Natural Ketosis we use only chicory fibre in our nut bars, thereby ensuring that the quality of our food is second to none.

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