Does Reading Food Labels & Being Selective Drive you Crazy?

Want to learn what to buy and read food labels without going bonkers?

Here we go then!

Have you ever picked up a loaf of bread and wondered what it was made from? Flipped it over and felt like you were staring at the specification manual for a Space Shuttle?

Kcals, carbs, poly-this, mono-that, hydrogenated fat, saturated, unsaturated??? All I wanted was some toast.

What’s in the food we are eating? That’s all we asked for? Is this even bread?

Food labels can feel like they’re specifically designed to confuse. They may have just let a sugar-addled geek loose in a food lab.

But once you know a few tricks, they stop being secret diagrams of nuclear reactors and start being helpful tools. Here’s how to read them without going cross-eyed.

The Big Three to Spot First - If you only look at three things, make them these: Carbs, Sugar & Fat. When you get the hang of the C, S, F, you’ll add one more: Fibre.

1. Carbs & Sugars - to my mind, this is the most important. Others may disagree, but this is where a T2D can make a choice about whether to either have a hyper attack, a hangover, or stay reasonably normal. (Normal Eh mmm???)

Here’s a little trick I learned long ago. If I’m being strong, I won’t eat anything with 4.1g or more of sugar per 100g. So! Anything from 0 to 4.0g of sugar I can eat, and I’ll buy.

Right, I go shopping and let’s say I fancy some yoghurt. I walk along the aisle and I see the yoghurts. Firstly, I check out the stuff I know I definitely cannot eat. for around 15 minutes. After this, I decide which yoghurt I fancy. I pick up the pot and give myself eye strain because I’ve left my glasses at home or in the car.

So, in my head (apart from the vision of a chocolate trifle), I do the maths. Don’t panic! It’s quite simple.

Firstly, I see that it’s over 4.0g of sugar per 100g. Nope! I’m not eating it. I put it back......

If I want to exercise my brain cells more... let’s say it is 4.0g of sugar per 100g? That makes it 4% sugar.

Now, how much of this 500g pot am I going to eat in one sitting? A quarter? A half? Sweet jeez, the whole pot? OK, do the maths... If I eat a quarter of the pot (that never happens), that’s 125g right? At 4g per 100.

So can my diabetes handle an extra gram of sugar, or thereabouts? Yeah! No problem. I buy it. But I’m still thinking of the chocolate trifle really. Maybe at Christmas?

Hang on... This yoghurt is plain. It’s going to taste a bit... er... plain. Mmmm. What about a flavoured yoghurt?

Eagerly, I put down the plain yoghurt pot and pick up a lovely looking strawberry yoghurt. Ooo, this is 500g too. Right! Let’s have a look at the sugar in this.

So the carbs are 8.1, of which sugars are 7.9 per 100g. Oh my aching head..... A one-way trip to planet Zog! This is a no no.

I could get the plain and some fresh strawberries, liquidise some and mix them in? I’ll maybe get two dessert spoons of yoghurt to eat. Is it worth it for all that effort? Where’s the chocolate trifle kept? Nooooo. With practice, this is all done with one glance. You’ll become an expert.

Fibre: This one’s your ally. The more fibre, the better — it slows down sugar absorption and keeps you fuller. It’s recommended that we eat around 30 grams of fibre a day. Most of us don’t reach that figure though. The bigger the fibre number on the package of food, the better.

Types of fibre include: fruits & veggies, potatoes, and whole grains, like wholemeal bread, brown rice, oats, quinoa, & wholemeal pasta. We all know what we should be doing, but...

Is there much fibre in choccy trifle?

2. Serving Size Shenanigans - Manufacturers love to shrink serving sizes to make foods look healthier. A cereal box might list 30g as a portion (about three spoonfuls). Nobody eats that little. Always check what a realistic serving looks like and multiply accordingly. Just as I did with the carbs & sugar.

3. The Traffic Light System - In the UK, many foods use the red/amber/green system. I’m not sure about the US, or other places?

Green = good to go

Amber = think twice

Red = proceed with caution (or run)

A quick glance here can save you from needing a calculator in the supermarket aisle.

4. Sugar’s Sneaky Names - Sugar is the master of disguise. Look out for these: dextrose, maltose, corn syrup, honey, molasses, fruit concentrate. If the ingredient list reads like a sugar thesaurus, put it back. Corn Syrup is a killer! (Check it out, if you don't believe me.)

5. Fat Facts - “Low fat” often means “high sugar.” Healthy fats (from nuts, seeds, olive oil & avocado oil are fine.)

What you want to avoid are trans fats and hydrogenated oils - they are the real troublemakers. People have been told utter rubbish by food companies and doctors (not all doctors).
Good fats are actually good for you. This includes Animal Fat. Render. Lard.

6. The 5-second Hack - In a rush? Forget the fluff. Check:

Total Carbs

Sugars

Fibre

If it passes the CSF test, it’s trolley-worthy. If not, move on.

Unless you crack and go back for the choccy trifle!

Final thoughts

Food labels shouldn’t require a PhD in chemistry. With these shortcuts, you can walk into a supermarket, scan, and make smarter choices without losing your sanity.

And if you ever find a label claiming “one serving = half a biscuit,” send me a photo. I can laugh about it while eating the whole thing.