No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

You’ve probably heard that trans fat damages your arteries by lowering your good cholesterol, HDL, and increasing the bad cholesterol, LDL. So you start reading food labels and choose things that say “zero trans fat.” If you’re watching your weight, you may opt for “sugar-free," “fat-free,” or “calorie-free” foods. But behind that deceptive word, “free,” there is actually a loophole that food manufacturers can get around.

• Foods can be labeled “calorie-free,” if they contain less than 5 calories per serving.
• Foods can be labeled “sugar-free,” “fat-free” and “zero trans fat” if they contain less than .5 g per serving.

While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), may count these as insignificant amounts per serving, the collective effect of these foods can be detrimental. The American Heart Association recommends no more than 1% of total calories to be from trans-fat, or less than 2 grams per day. If you eat a few cookies with say .4 grams of trans fat per serving, labeled as “zero trans-fat”, you can easily reach 2 grams in a day. Trans-fat also comes in the form of the word “hydrogenated.” Stay clear of anything that says “hydrogenated,” or “partially-hydrogenated.” Food manufacturers, in all their altruism, pump foods full of hydrogen to make them last longer on the shelf and in your pantry. A Twinkie or a Ding Dog will outlive us all.

Same as trans-fat, calories, sugar, and fat can add up. But beyond the calories you are consuming, foods that are “free” are usually synthetic and artificial and aren’t good for your health anyway. So please don’t take the word “free” as license to indulge frivolously.

Another thing to keep in mind with food labels is that ingredients are listed in descending order by weight. For example, if the first ingredient is sugar, salt, or fat, that is what you’re primarily consuming.

For more information on food labeling regulations, visit: http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/FoodLabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuide/ucm064911.htm