Teach you to look through food packaging four gimmick

Now people for food quality and safety concern, especially processed foods, and our lives.

Some indicate no adds, no preservatives in food we can believe in? as a concern about the health of smart consumers, buying the food it is best not to be deceived by the packaging.

Consumers are very vulnerable to food packaging "puff" type information.

What is the how to view the advertisement, packaging these attractive terms. Here are some selected representative, to anatomy which also hints and products.

Remark 1: "aseptic-free"

Does not contain preservatives, can not say that does not contain other food additives.

Antioxidants, flavor, color, hair color, such as fresh agents can in it. In other words, does not contain preservatives, does not guarantee that it is "natural" State.

Many natural foods is no preservatives such as cans, for example, some salt and sugar high food, there are some extremely dry foods such as instant noodles, noodle, etc.

Because canned food can put inside the killing bacteria and spores thoroughly, and sealed up, let out bacteria can't go, so it does not require preservative. Without water, bacteria can multiply, large amounts of salt and sugar to preservatives.

However, salt and sugar content is too high, worse than the preservatives.

Because a large number of health risks than by several preservatives bad. For example, some soy sauce, miso, pickled vegetables, etc. that don't contain preservatives, are usually the savory espresso and even then with sugar covered products. Therefore, "this product without preservatives" should not become the consumer a product of preemption main reasons.

Remark 2: "does not contain artificial pigment"

Mean, it's still contain pigments, pigment is not only the colours, but from natural raw materials are extracted.

For example, contain carotenoids extract, red pigment, Lac red, etc from the natural food of the pigment.

For most consumers, the natural pigment comparison reassuring, but during the extraction process, nor does it exclude contain trace amounts of organic solvent residues.

As long as they meet the relevant product standards, would not mind. But the problem is, the product of strong color is the pigment, which means the raw materials and less "natural".

For example, the shopping centre in the Red or green "juice" product that looks like a fruit concentrate, packaging also draw big fruit images.

But a closer look at the raw note found, it is only with the original juice almost 20%. In other words, of which 80% of the content, are water, sugar, flavour, colour, thickeners, etc. Although using a natural pigment, or mislead the consumer, to let people think it is better than 100% of the juice also strong.

Remark 3: "do not contain sugar."

It is often common in aleurone products, biscuits, snacks, etc.

Their packaging on the "do not contain sugar", that is, not including our daily eating white granulated sugar. In the elderly, patients with diabetes and obesity, are vulnerable to this kind of professed attraction. In fact, that's a big trap.

Let the blood sugar to rise rapidly, much more than sucrose.

Refined starch sugar increased speed is fast enough to starch as the raw material produced by dextrin, malt dextrin, malt syrup, glucose syrup, fructose syrup, etc, everything is better than sucrose has gone. In those claiming "no sucrose" products, which often can see these ingredients. Diabetes if they choose, it's really not as directly to eat rice.

From the nutritional value, no sucrose nor mean nutrient than other products.

If you do not add sugar, volume by what can fill? is starch, dextrin, oils and the like, in addition to providing elevated blood glucose for energy, on people's help. The problem is that they often give people a "luxury" and "restorative" illusion.

Remark 4: "no MSG"

Western products like "no MSG" this claim, it seems that the MSG is a scourge.

However, there are few people in MSG-sensitive sodium glutamate, produces a series of reactions. So many so-called products do not contain Msg. However, many experts tips that do not contain msg, does not mean that it does not contain sodium glutamate which constituents, more does not mean that it does not contain artificial increase in fresh ingredients.

This is because now the food industry uses in a wide variety of fresh agent too.

In addition to monosodium glutamate, sodium, sodium organic nucleotide, chicken essence, yeast extract, hydrolyzed plant protein, etc. Various flavor of hydrolysates, extract which contains a considerable number of sodium glutamate and monosodium glutamate is, in fact, not too much difference. Those who fear the monosodium glutamate, sodium you need to control the food capacity of people to look clear.

However, not all claims are meaningless.

For example, a fan products say "no", at least alum containing instructions to eat it will not be affected by the harm of aluminum. Also, for example, I very much hope that there are Chinese meat products could claim that "this product does not contain nitrite", because it is too difficult to find such a product.

(Edit: Justin Lin, internships)