‘no sugar added’ varieties instead.
9. Milk Alternatives
The sources of milk alternatives typically aren’t very sweet so manufacturers add sugar for more flavor. It’s a good idea to look for unsweetened options then add vanilla, almond, or cinnamon.
10. Salad Dressings
Many manufacturers add sugar to salad dressings for flavor and to balance any acidity. Since this can be hard to avoid, how about making your own dressings? Some versions start with simple ingredients like grape juice, white vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil.
How To Spot The Added Sugar
Added sugar can sneak into any product, so your best bet is to learn how to read the labels on your food.
The first thing you should look at is the ‘Ingredient Listing’, which shows what’s in the product in order of decreasing content. That means your food will contain the most of whatever ingredient is listed first. Even if it doesn’t say ‘sugar’, check for ‘evaporated cane juice, corn syrup solids, high-fructose corn syrup, molasses, and honey.
Next, look at the ‘Nutrition Facts’. The serving size will show how much you’re supposed to eat at a given sitting. Just because it’s in one container, doesn’t mean that’s the serving size.
You should then look at the number of calories per serving size as well as which nutrients the food contains. Generally, you might see nutrients such as dietary fiber, protein, vitamins, and minerals.
Finally, look at the ‘% Dailly Value (DV)’ that’s listed for everything on the nutrition panel. The DV refers to the amount of a nutrient you should eat daily. It’s typical for 5% DV to be considered low and 20% DV to be considered high. Ideally, you’ll want to aim for lower amounts of added sugar, sodium, and saturated fat but higher amounts of dietary fiber, Vitamin D, calcium, and iron.
It can be tricky to maintain a proper diet when added sugars pop up where you least expect them to. Fortunately, it’s easy to weed out the questionable products if you read their labels carefully. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll have the right diet in no time.