Sugar and its many guises

Think you know how to work out if the foods you’re buying have any added sugar – and how much they contain? Think again. Sugar comes in many forms, but not to fear – you just need a little help in deciphering those sneaky sugar guises…

When shopping, it’s important to remember to read the labels on any processed foods you buy (even savoury ones that you might not realise contain sugar at all!) and you’ll be surprised how often sugar, in any of its forms, pops up. It’s no wonder that so many of us are addicted to the stuff – it seems to be everywhere we look, even where we least expect it! 

But food producers are clever you see… They have to list their ingredients in quantity order – but by dividing up ‘sugar’ into lots of different names, and into lots of smaller quantities, they are able to hide them lower down on the list. So, that snack you think contains a little sugar, could well have much more of the sweet stuff than the ‘sugar’ labelled – but it’s sneaked in, in many of its many other names and forms. So familiarise yourself with sugar’s many guises, and don’t be duped!

Take note: High-Fructose Corn Syrup has a particularly bad name, with many scientists linking it to diabetes and obesity. Some people believe High Fructose Corn Syrup is banned in the UK, but in fact, it can still be found, and is often labelled as Glucose-Fructose Syrup, so beware!

Sugar tips by Dr Sally Norton.  UK Health Expert.  NHS Weight Loss Surgeon and founder of www.vavistalife.com