Do you look at calories or Ingredients??

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Replies

  • BonnieDundee78
    BonnieDundee78 Posts: 158 Member
    I don't subscribe to food being good or bad. Everything in moderation (and within my calorie goals) is just fine.

    And just because something contains "mysterious" ingredients doesn't mean it's bad for you. Case in point: cyanocobalamin is better known as vitamin B12.
  • __TMac__
    __TMac__ Posts: 1,665 Member
    If it's not a basic food like veggies, meat, cheese, flour, beans, I check the calories and the ingredients before choosing.

    I do buy one "light" item (English muffins), but usually just balance regular higher calorie foods with lower calorie ones. Otherwise, I eat what I've always eaten.

    I was raised eating mostly whole foods and believe that they're important for long-term health. So I do read ingredients labels and choose or reject in that basis.

  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    Happyhealthy08 wrote: »
    crzycatlady1 wrote: »
    I don't think I've ever run across a food that has questionable ingredients, so not quite sure what you mean there? When I look at nutrition labels I compare calories to grams, meaning how many calories a serving is.

    I did type "rubbish" firstly but ingredients such as aspartame and in general ingredients you cannot recognise :)

    What do you mean ingredients you can't recognise?

    What about aspartame do you not recognise?

    Surely you don't base your decisions on your lack of knowledge of names of ingredients?
  • newheavensearth
    newheavensearth Posts: 870 Member
    Calories, serving size, ingredients. I watch sugars and fats for my and my family's particular health issues. As long as I buy foods as clean and unprocessed with as few add ons (sauces, flavorings, syrups, etc.) as possible, those stay under control.
  • njitaliana
    njitaliana Posts: 814 Member
    I'm allergic to wheat, soy and corn, so I don't have much choice but to read ingredients on everything. Beyond that, I didn't care much. Now I've started paying more attention to other things because I have to avoid chemicals for health reasons. There really aren't too many processed food products that I can eat. I'm mostly cooking from scratch.
  • annteja
    annteja Posts: 48 Member
    Calories and macronutrients (especially sugar). I try to eat processed food as little as possible and even that are things like humus, pasta , souces and basic things like that. I don't eat pre-made mails.
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,285 Member
    A bit of both. I have certain staples in my vegetarian pantry/fridge that are processed. (Yves veggie dogs and burgers. Gardein.) I also love to cook and when a recipe calls for something 'convenient', by which I mean something I could make from scratch easily enough but choose not to, say barbecue sauce, I have caught myself checking out different brands in the grocery store and going for a lower-calorie option.
  • tmoneyag99
    tmoneyag99 Posts: 471 Member
    I look at it all. Calories = Weight loss. Macros determine how satieated I will be after eating those calories (ie will I be satisfied or will I need more) and ingredients as well as micros tell me how much bang I get per bite as well as possibly where my calories are coming and how processed the food is.
  • dpwellman
    dpwellman Posts: 3,271 Member
    I do the opposite.
  • Larissa_NY
    Larissa_NY Posts: 495 Member
    edited March 2017
    crzycatlady1 wrote: »
    Happyhealthy08 wrote: »
    crzycatlady1 wrote: »
    I don't think I've ever run across a food that has questionable ingredients, so not quite sure what you mean there? When I look at nutrition labels I compare calories to grams, meaning how many calories a serving is.

    I did type "rubbish" firstly but ingredients such as aspartame and in general ingredients you cannot recognise :)

    But there's nothing wrong with aspartame and I do know what it is.

    Someone on my Facebook feed once posted a macro to the effect of "If you don't buy things because you don't recognize the ingredients, you need to learn the names of more ingredients."

    Personally I don't buy "thin bread" or Lean Cuisine tv dinners or fat-free cookies because they look disgusting and I'm a picky eater. I'm not eating food-flavored product just because it's devoid of calories.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,226 MFP Moderator
    I concentrate on calories and then macros. But I also largely focus on whole foods.. but is definitely 4 different types of jelly beans, Cadbury eggs, ice cream, toaster strudel and 2-3 diet mt. dews in my diet daily.

    I have lost 50lbs + at this point, gotten down to about 15% body fat, and improved every single metabolic marker possible.
  • fitmom4lifemfp
    fitmom4lifemfp Posts: 1,572 Member
    I don't believe artificial sweeteners are "questionable". I want thin-sliced bread, or half of a fat slice. Lean Cuisine makes some delicious and healthy meals. Seems kind of logical to me.
  • nickiphillips1
    nickiphillips1 Posts: 114 Member
    Since I rarely buy pre-processed foods, I would look at ingredients. I normally eat vegetables, fruit and fish or low-fat meat. I had some pre-packaged potatoes last night, but they have potatoes in them.
    I don't buy food that I can't read or understand what an ingredient is. If it isn't natural, I am not going to eat it.

    Low fat and non-fat food has other stuff you don't need. Substitute sugar is really bad for you.

    To each, his or her own though.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,577 Member
    I mostly eat whole foods that don't have labels, but I read the full label and ingredients when buying packaged foods. I buy some low cal, fat free or 'diet' foods and some not.
  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,572 Member
    The first thing I base my meal around is protein, then vegetables. I don't have too many ingredients to consider. I eat some lower calorie things like laughing cow cheese and halo top, but the ingredients don't bother me as at least 80% of my diet comes from whole foods.
  • amandaeve
    amandaeve Posts: 722 Member
    I read all ingredients and serving sizes. Always have, for health but I also just find it interesting. I try to avoid modified sugars in my packaged food, although most of what I eat I make from scratch. I also haven't found an artificial sweeter I can tolerate the taste of, so I will pick a Pepsi throwback over a Diet drink. Not to say that Pepsi is remotely healthy for me. So, I do read everything and make it a point to understand what I am consuming, but I also still make plenty of "unhealthy" choices. I try not to stress about it, and at times I find the joy of eating "unhealthy" food totally worth it.

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