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Showing posts with the label high fructose corn syrup

Focus on Whole Wheat Bread

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Are you choosing whole wheat bread or bread that has some or no whole wheat?   When I ask my students, “How can you tell if bread is whole grain?” I get quite interesting answers.   Some say, color – brown bread is whole wheat bread.   Some say – look at the label but then don’t explain what to look for.   So how do you know if bread is whole wheat and what are some of the best whole grain breads to choose?   Environmental Nutrition recently wrote, “ Best in Whole Wheat Bread ” and provided a lot of recommended whole wheat breads to choose from.    Why whole wheat bread?   Choosing whole grain bread is good for your health.   Forget the gluten free craze (unless you have celiac disease) and focus on buying and enjoying some whole grain bread. Whole grain bread adds fiber to your day.   Most Americans have diets quite low in fiber and eating whole grain bread is a great way to add some fiber to your diet. Whole grain bread has many trace ...

Cut the Added Sugar

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So much added sugar in our diets.   We notice most of the added sugar in our diets, like the added sugar in candy, ice cream or desserts.   But so much added sugar is “stealth sugar” in our foods.   Manufacturers love to add sugar to common foods like bread and pasta sauce.   There is also so much confusion about “sugar” as some people avoid “sugar” and then end up avoiding milk because it has lactose, a natural sugar in milk. Or they stop eating fruit like bananas, as they mistakenly say, “bananas are high in sugar”, when bananas have NO ADDED SUGAR.   So, what should you know about added sugar?   Consumer Reports has provided an excellent guide called, Eat Smarter, Eat Healthier which includes information about we can cut back on the added sugar in our diet.    Can you enjoy some added sugar? Yes.   Who doesn’t like dessert, some ice cream, some cookies or other treat every day?   I do.   The problem is we eat way too many foods ...

What is a “Natural” Food?

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Ever go to the grocery store and find “All Natural” written across the package front?    Doesn’t that sound healthy?    A good for you food?   As some of your friends what “natural” means and you will get a lot of different answers.   So what does a food labeled “natural” or “all natural” mean?   As noted in What Does "Natural" Mean to the FDA? ,   Unlike “organic,” which is legally regulated, “natural,” when seen in the aisles of your local supermarket, can mean pretty much anything the processors like. The federal government has yet to regulate the term “natural” or “all natural” so manufacturers use the terms to sell you on their product.   I was buying something once that said, “all natural ingredients”.   Then I looked at the ingredients and found “sucrose” or white table sugar listed. There is nothing “natural” about table sugar, it is highly processed food almost devoid of vitamins and minerals.   What is FDA doing about regu...