PROOF Dec 2018 | Page 39

39 Health buzzwords and phrases explained! Gluten-free Gluten is a protein found in grains like wheat, barley etc. that helps foods maintain their shape. About 1% of the population suffers from celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity which means they are unable to digest products with gluten. Organic The item’s ingredients must be 95% (or more) certified organic i.e. free of synthetic additives, and must not be processed using industrial solvents, irradiation, or genetic engineering. Which is good – just remember that ‘organic’ does not guarantee superior nutrition, nor does it mean fewer calories. Zero trans fats Trans fats are a type of fat, typically found in fried foods, baked goods, packaged snack foods, etc. These artery-clogging fats have been shown to increase the risk for heart disease, and unfortunately, zero trans fats doesn’t always mean zero. The FDA allows products to contain up to 0.5g per serving and still say ‘zero’ on the nutrition facts. If the product lists ‘partially hydrogenated oil’ as an ingredient, chances are the product still contains trans fats. All-Natural Food advisory boards such as the Food Standards Agency (UK) and the Food and Drug Administration (US), have stated that the term should refer to a product that is comprised of ingredients produced by nature, untouched by man. However, presently the term is not covered by legislation or code of practice, i.e. it can just be placed on packages, pretty much arbitrarily. Sugar-free A food item which contains 0.5 grams of sugar per serving, or less, and “contains no ingredient that is a sugar or generally understood to contain sugars” can be labelled sugar-free. This does not mean it doesn’t contain other ‘sweeteners’ like honey, agave, sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (artificial sweeteners have shown to be quite harmful to your health!).