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Labels, Marketing, Nutrition knowledge
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The_Enginerd wrote: »
Animal products show up in unexpected places as additives or used in the processing, like bone char used in the processing of white sugar, so I can get why that may be a thing.GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »Now, if the rest of you want to laugh at the bag of flour in my pantry that is labeled "vegan" and "lactose free"? Have at it. I'm still scratching my head over that one.
Yeah, I had thought of the processing of sugar, but I wasn't aware of anything involved in the processing of wheat. The lactose is the one that really got me wondering. Hopefully someone stumbles across this who could shed some light on the label on Wegmans flour.0 -
When my daughter was a baby, she had MSPI, so I was in the habit of reading all the labels. It was a really difficult few years because nearly everything contains some form of milk, soy, or protein. I had to learn all of the different names they could be labeled as. I eventually got the hang of it, and she eventually grew out of it, for the most part. She still tends to have flare ups in the form of IBS type symptoms from dairy products, so that is what I look for most when reading labels. I also tend to look for lower sodium products, simply because I like the taste better.0
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I'm like GottaBurnEmAll, the grocery store is a minefield. I'm not a celiac, thank goodness, but I do have MCS. So there is a long list of additives, preservatives, bleaching agents, and dyes I cannot ingest safely. So I have to read labels very carefully. Some foods I don't even know what in them causes a reaction...for example Frosted Mini Wheats give me a horrible blistering rash on the insides of my arms...no idea what in them causes it. My little brother is allergic to corn, so I also appreciate the labels for that reason as well as you can find corn starch in things like baking powder or grated cheese. My MCS is also why I don't eat fast food ever...the chances of puking my guts out, fainting and rashes were 100% on my teen attempts to be "normal" by hitting KFC, McDonalds, etc with my friends.
The sad thing is that many restaurants are getting fast foodish....I was on a road trip from Ohio to Florida a few years ago and thought, hey Cracker Barrel should be ok. Nope...I was puking like some weird vomit fountain and turned red like I'd been sunburned badly. It wasn't food poisoning as my travel companion had split the dish with me and was fine. The same thing happened at Chilis. Made me very sad to think restaurants are now hit or miss.0 -
So I went grocery shopping today and you know what I found out? Raw white potatoes are gluten-free! Who knew?
Seriously though, I can see putting the gluten-free label on things like sauces or soups,etc, but I think that anyone that knows they should be avoiding gluten would know that fresh vegetables are safe.
I've also noticed a lot of "Whole 30 approved" labels too. Having done a Whole30 and having friends who've done it, I know we wouldn't trust that. We'd read the label ourselves.
So not a debate really, but how much value do you put on these marketing tactics when choosing your food? Have you seen other similar labels out there?
I have not seen those labels on fresh produce where I live.
It would not make a difference to me as no one in my house is eating gluten free or a special diet.
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I used to think those types of labels were ridiculous and silly. Like, how dumb can people be?!?
Then I had a child who has a food allergy and I had to start reading all the food labels. There are so many foods that have ingredients that surprise me, possibly as an additive or possibly as a cross contamination risk.
Now when I see those "silly" gluten-free labels on a potato or lactose free labels on milk, etc, I am grateful that I don't have to worry about gluten or dairy and sympathetic to those who do.
Side note: "may contain nuts" on a peanut package actually refers to tree nuts, which are different from peanuts. Someone may be allergic to tree nuts, but not peanuts, and vice versa.4 -
I read everything on labels starting with the calories and sodium. The way I look at it is like this... I don't smoke because I would never inhale toxic cancer-causing chemicals into my body. Why on earth would I eat them? If I pick up a product and there's more than just a few ingredients I immediately put it back. The wonderful thing I there are no labels on fruits and vegetables. Gotta love single ingredient foods lol!3
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The ONLY thing I read on labels is CALORIE COUNT per serving.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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I never used to, but I have started looking at the ingredients list on a lot of things. I have never had issues with any foods, but I do try to be conscious of what I am eating. It is surprising what are put in to foods, especially things that seem "healthy".1
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I am another who doesn't care what is on the label except basic nutrition and "no salt added".
Personal care products on the other hand . . . I am allergic to formaldehyde and it is extremely common in shampoo, conditioner, lotion, make-up, baby wipes, etc. You won't see it on the label as formaldehyde, but the preservatives companies use instead of parabens release it as they break down. The ingredients lists on these things is much smaller than the ingredients list on food products too so I really have to read carefully. The label proudly says "paraben free!" which is often a tip off for me to avoid it.1 -
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.2 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
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.
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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.0 -
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.1 -
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.0
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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.2 -
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.
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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.1 -
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.3
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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.2 -
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.0
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