The Hungry Girl's Answer to Lying Confusing Labels...

pmkelly409

Dear Hungry Girl,

I'm so tired of all the misinformation out there. I was horrified to learn that many packaged foods actually have more fat and/or calories than the labels state. How can we know what to believe? Is it safe to eat ANYTHING?

Label Rage


Dear Label Rage,

I feel your pain. Totally. It's hard to know who or what to trust these days. I have a few general rules that I live by, and I want to share them with you (and everyone else!). Here they are...

1. If something seems or tastes too good to be true, there's a good chance the stats are off. For example, if you prepare a packaged pizza with a 200-calorie label and you taste buttery crust and see a pool of oil on top of the cheese (hello, EAT RITE PIZZA!), the label is WRONG. VERY wrong.

2. Big boys don't lie. If a product is made by a trusted brand, like General Mills, Quaker, Kraft, etc., there's an excellent chance the info provided is accurate. On the flip side, mom-and-pop companies are far more likely to have mislabeled products. If you're buying things from little-known companies with names like Henny's Low-Fat Desserts, Grammynana's Cookies, and Rising Starz Cookie Company, and the foods are large, rich, and decadent yet have suspiciously low calorie and fat counts, there is a tremendous possibility the labels are wrong. This may be a tough one for you to swallow (no pun intended), but it is what it is.

3. Weigh your food. Every so often, throw it on a food scale to see if the actual weight matches what the package says. This serves two purposes. First of all, you'll immediately get a feel for whether or not this food manufacturer cares about accurate labeling. And secondly, if the food weighs more or less than it's supposed to, at least you'll know that the nutritional stats are off in some way and you'll be able to factor that in.

4. Pay attention to YOUR scale. If you discover a new treat and start eating it daily, and then you notice extra pounds creeping on when they shouldn't be, it's l ikely that your new find is a suspicious one. Try swapping it out for a while with a trusted snack with equal nutritional value -- if the numbers on the scale go down, you've found your answer.

There you have it -- four helpful tips for you. Hang in there!

pmkelly409

Dear Hungry Girl,

I'm so tired of all the misinformation out there. I was horrified to learn that many packaged foods actually have more fat and/or calories than the labels state. How can we know what to believe? Is it safe to eat ANYTHING?

Label Rage


Dear Label Rage,

I feel your pain. Totally. It's hard to know who or what to trust these days. I have a few general rules that I live by, and I want to share them with you (and everyone else!). Here they are...

1. If something seems or tastes too good to be true, there's a good chance the stats are off. For example, if you prepare a packaged pizza with a 200-calorie label and you taste buttery crust and see a pool of oil on top of the cheese (hello, EAT RITE PIZZA!), the label is WRONG. VERY wrong.

2. Big boys don't lie. If a product is made by a trusted brand, like General Mills, Quaker, Kraft, etc., there's an excellent chance the info provided is accurate. On the flip side, mom-and-pop companies are far more likely to have mislabeled products. If you're buying things from little-known companies with names like Henny's Low-Fat Desserts, Grammynana's Cookies, and Rising Starz Cookie Company, and the foods are large, rich, and decadent yet have suspiciously low calorie and fat counts, there is a tremendous possibility the labels are wrong. This may be a tough one for you to swallow (no pun intended), but it is what it is.

3. Weigh your food. Every so often, throw it on a food scale to see if the actual weight matches what the package says. This serves two purposes. First of all, you'll immediately get a feel for whether or not this food manufacturer cares about accurate labeling. And secondly, if the food weighs more or less than it's supposed to, at least you'll know that the nutritional stats are off in some way and you'll be able to factor that in.

4. Pay attention to YOUR scale. If you discover a new treat and start eating it daily, and then you notice extra pounds creeping on when they shouldn't be, it's l ikely that your new find is a suspicious one. Try swapping it out for a while with a trusted snack with equal nutritional value -- if the numbers on the scale go down, you've found your answer.

There you have it -- four helpful tips for you. Hang in there!

mrsyac2

Dear Hungry Girl,

I'm so tired of all the misinformation out there. I was horrified to learn that many packaged foods actually have more fat and/or calories than the labels state. How can we know what to believe? Is it safe to eat ANYTHING?

Label Rage


Dear Label Rage,

I feel your pain. Totally. It's hard to know who or what to trust these days. I have a few general rules that I live by, and I want to share them with you (and everyone else!). Here they are...

1. If something seems or tastes too good to be true, there's a good chance the stats are off. For example, if you prepare a packaged pizza with a 200-calorie label and you taste buttery crust and see a pool of oil on top of the cheese (hello, EAT RITE PIZZA!), the label is WRONG. VERY wrong.

2. Big boys don't lie. If a product is made by a trusted brand, like General Mills, Quaker, Kraft, etc., there's an excellent chance the info provided is accurate. On the flip side, mom-and-pop companies are far more likely to have mislabeled products. If you're buying things from little-known companies with names like Henny's Low-Fat Desserts, Grammynana's Cookies, and Rising Starz Cookie Company, and the foods are large, rich, and decadent yet have suspiciously low calorie and fat counts, there is a tremendous possibility the labels are wrong. This may be a tough one for you to swallow (no pun intended), but it is what it is.

3. Weigh your food. Every so often, throw it on a food scale to see if the actual weight matches what the package says. This serves two purposes. First of all, you'll immediately get a feel for whether or not this food manufacturer cares about accurate labeling. And secondly, if the food weighs more or less than it's supposed to, at least you'll know that the nutritional stats are off in some way and you'll be able to factor that in.

4. Pay attention to YOUR scale. If you discover a new treat and start eating it daily, and then you notice extra pounds creeping on when they shouldn't be, it's l ikely that your new find is a suspicious one. Try swapping it out for a while with a trusted snack with equal nutritional value -- if the numbers on the scale go down, you've found your answer.

There you have it -- four helpful tips for you. Hang in there!

thats just crazy-- Its like you can't win-