Labels, Marketing, Nutrition knowledge

AnvilHead

NorthCascades wrote: »

TmacMMM wrote: »

Zero. Zilch. Nada. They're a reason not to buy those products.

That said, years ago, I was pleased to find out that my OJ was fat-free.

I always pay extra for free range water, but I'm not sure if organic and gluten free are worth the price?

Not me, I strictly go for the farm-raised water! Them scientists in there crushing those hydrogen and oxygen molecules together and making them reproduce in a sterile tank have to be better for me than free-range water with all teh toxinzzz in it - animal pee, algae, dirt, fish poop, people's dirty feets, etc.

peleroja

For myself, I ignore everything besides calories and protein for products like meal replacement bars or vegetarian faux-meat products (because I'm buying those items specifically as a source of protein.)

The one exception are the "peanut-free facility" icons, as my husband has one of those scary anaphylactic peanut allergies where we try not to even risk him eating anything that says "may contain traces". So if I'm buying something he's going to be eating (especially snack food stuff like ice cream or chocolate) I do prioritize stuff that's got that labelled clearly on the front since I know he can have it without reading every ingredient.

Because of him, though, anything that he alone or both of us will be eating I have to read the whole label since I would prefer not to have to epipen him and drive to the ER and it's just not worth the risk that there could be some peanut oil in a bottled sauce or his tortilla chips were cross-contaminated because they were made somewhere that also produces caramel peanut popcorn or whatever.

I don't eat peanut products myself for fear of accidentally murdering him with a peanutty kiss or something but I will have stuff with the "may contain traces" warning.

tomteboda

VintageFeline wrote: »

I do chuckle at bags of peanuts having "may contain nuts" or something like wholewheat bread with "may contain wheat". Like no *kitten* Sherlock. I mean, if you're stupid enough to not realise you shouldn't eat peanuts with a peanut allergy then, well, natural selection.........

Personally I don't pay any attention at all. I'll check calories on things I buy rarely/never before to decide if that's what I want to use my calories on but otherwise, everything is fair game!

Actually this one is really important for people who are allergic to nuts, but not peanuts, which are legumes. I'm allergic to peanuts but not tree nuts, but because the two products are often processed together rely on this information. In its absence, I would have to assume no foods with nuts are safe. Due to the severity of peanut and nut allergies, this type of labeling can be life - saving.

Nony_Mouse

As someone new to food intolerances, I practically need giant neon signs on things to remind me at the moment. Which is hilarious, because I'm well used to reading labels as a vegetarian to check for animal products. Of course I'm now having to recheck all those things. So those really obvious allergen warnings are awesome imho.

tomteboda

I have an autoimmune disease and disrepair of my immune responses. I'm allergic or chemically sensitive to:
* Soy
* Peanuts
* Some random spice that's in hunts ketchup and lipton golden onion soup
* Penicillin
* Latex
* Lanolin
* Polyester
* Formaldehyde
* Meta-xylene

I would rather ignore all of these issues, but every time I do I wind up in the ER not breathing or with terrible rashes or suffer incredible GI distress.

I greatly appreciate ingredient listing.

Not related to the allergy issues, my mom has kidney failure. We watch sodium very carefully in our home. I also keep a tight watch on fiber because our diet was very low in it and my mom's medications interfere with digestion, and also colon cancer runs in the family.

I think labeling is sensible. I even provide ingredient cards for dishes I bring to pot-lucks.

ElizabethHanrahan

I have a milk and shellfish allergy. I have found BOTH things in lunch meats so I read all labels carefully. Some of the warning labels seem silly if you don't know that the equipment is often shared by other products. A good example is dark chocolate. You would think that it would be alright for a dairy allergy BUT it is often made on the same processing line as the milk chocolate so COULD have some milk in it. I am only safe if the item is VEGAN since there is NEVER any animal product, but they are almost 3 times the price of regular.

stealthq

ElizabethHanrahan wrote: »

I have a milk and shellfish allergy. I have found BOTH things in lunch meats so I read all labels carefully. Some of the warning labels seem silly if you don't know that the equipment is often shared by other products. A good example is dark chocolate. You would think that it would be alright for a dairy allergy BUT it is often made on the same processing line as the milk chocolate so COULD have some milk in it. I am only safe if the item is VEGAN since there is NEVER any animal product, but they are almost 3 times the price of regular.

Dark chocolate often has milk in it. Dark just means it has less milk than milk chocolate, not none.

JohnnyPenso

When I began on my path to better health and nutrition more than a decade ago, I started reading labels religiously. Gradually I started becoming more and more averse to putting unpronouncible chemical compounds into my body and gradually slid onto the path of doing most of my cooking from scratch or with very simple ingredients and methods and only purchasing packaged products that had minimal added ingredients or none at all. I rarely read labels now because I read so many in the past and it turned me off of "factory" food.

Theo166

sarjenki wrote: »

Most of that labeling is geared toward undereducated consumers. As long as people remain that way the labeling will continue.
I bought a bag of apples last week, and my husband jokingly pointed out their "gluten free" label.

Yes, it's marketing to all the people that have heard "gluten free" is part of a healthy diet, so adding it to the label makes the product appear more healthy. Remember most people are making very fast decisions in the grocery.

GaleHawkins

Packerjohn wrote: »

Other than the standardized nutrition information and the ingredients I do not pay attention to other stuff on labels which tends to be marketing fluff.

Yes on the marketing fluff factor for sure. I do look at the standardized nutrition because I eat <50 grams of carbs daily to cut out pain and any food cravings.