Come grocery shopping with me! Learning how to read nutritional labels.

Reading nutritional labels is something I always, always do when grocery shopping. Read on to see why!

WHEN IT COMES TO THE SERVING SIZES ON PACKAGES, DON’T BE FOOLED. THIS IS USUALLY DESIGNED TO TRICK US.

Always look at the serving size per 100g. A whole serving for you may be the whole box, whereas according to the label - the serving is actually a measly 15-20g. Another example of this can include a giant cookie, one we come across in the video are those ‘healthy protein cookies.’ Marketed to be healthy, but most people don't realise that each cookie on the nutrition label was marked as 2 serving sizes. Most people would read the serving size and think the label reads well, not realising that this cookie is meant to be consumed on two different occasions.

When looking in the gluten free aisle at the supermarket, you’d automatically think it has to be healthy right?

Almost every product here has sugar in it. Yep. Not everything in the health and fitness aisle is going to be a better or healthy option. Again, be sure to read the ingredient list, as sugar will most likely be found within the first 1-3 ingredients.

My favourite items within these aisles include the natural peanut butter (as it’s all natural freshly roasted peanuts), and gluten and wheat free pasta. When it comes to tomato sauce, we use no added sugar, sweetened with stevia. 

A box of bars that a few people have recommended or asked if I had tried before were marked as a healthy alternative. These were high protein and low in sugar but filled with fats. Let’s move onto quick lunchbox ideas, if you look up at the aisle sign above you head, you’ll notice you're in the lollies, confectionary and chocolate area.

Always remember, where food is placed in the aisles - it's a good indication of where it comes from.

Breakfast options, my favourite! It’s one of the healthiest meals of the day. Let’s take quick oats as a great option, most people get sucked into the quick sachet alternative, but as soon as you read the ingredients list, the second ingredient is sugar. Alternatively you can go for normal oats and add in some honey, maple syrup or fruit. My favourite at the moment is Ancient Grains oats…YUM!!

SOME MORE THINGS TO THINK ABOUT:

• Stevia – amazing and tastes sweet. I also love Natvia, a 100% natural sweetener for baking or using in my tea.
• Almond milk - has a lot of additives and not much almonds in it, some were 10%, 3% and even 2.5% almonds.
• Biscuits like Jatz - you wouldn’t think has sugar in it, it’s the 3^rd ingredient on the nutrition table.
• When it comes to spreads or jams, most will think it’s made up of fruit. There are a lot of jams that have added sugar to sweeten. Be sure to look for the natural options and always take note of the nutritional table if sugar is the first ingredient.
• Sauces and salad dressings - often made using additives, sugar, chemicals and preservatives. Try making your own! I mention my favourite homemade dressing in the vlog!
• Ice-cream treats - Skinny Cow ice-creams are ‘healthy alternatives’ and a 'low calorie option'. 1 serve of a Skinny Cow is 137 calories and marked as ‘healthy’. A lemon Streets paddle pop has almost half the amount of calories. This is just to show you to always invest time in what is in your nutrition labels.
• Yoghurts - a popular choice such as Yoplait has sugar as its second ingredient!
• Shopping local - I buy all my fruit and veg from my local farmer’s markets all fresh.
• Cleaning products or beauty products - try buying them online

This vlog is purely to educate, and to provide you with as much alternative knowledge as I can give on some products on the market. It is always worth the time investing effort into learning how to read nutritional labels and knowing what you’re putting into your body. Thank you for taking the time out to come shopping with me! To see my go through products step-by-step, watch the VLOG HERE.