Things disguised as healthy...

[marshmallowmamma]

A light hearted post but what are some things that are portrayed as healthy but aren't really ? My list is as follows...

Flavoured water
Most yoghurts
Yoghurt coated raisins
Most cereals
Fruit juices

Obviously we need to live a little but give us some that yiu think are purely just marketed to reel us in

Smoothies do release the sugar in fruit in a way that eating the whole fruit doesn't and commercial ones can be very calorific with a lot of sugar. But it doesn't mean they aren't healthy in and of themselves and they also have a lot of good things in them that for SOME people are easier for them to get in a smoothie. Sugar wise it might be the same as cola but nutrient wise they are not.

When my Dad had cancer and had no appetite for any food, smoothies were perfect as we could mix in Ensure and protein powder, nut butters, cream etc. Plus vitamins and minerals from the fruit. They were very healthy and nutritious for him at that point in time.

Yes this! I’ve got a ‘healthy’ friend who swears by them and judges me for choosing a chocolate biscuit. But there’s the same amount of calories in a chocolate digestive as there is a chocolate rice cake, only one tastes far far better 😂

Yo-yo bears aren’t fruit-based, though, they are just actual fruit with nothing else (I’m pretty sure). So while you can criticise them on the sugar content, as you can with any fruit (ask a dentist about the virtues of fruit!), they really are better than a kitkat.

Pom bears - may not be marketed as ‘healthy’ exactly but I was buying them for my kids on the understanding that they were a slightly better option than say walkers. NOT SO I discovered recently. Was idly comparing the two packets. Shocked that they have more salt and sugar than walkers.

the only thing they’ve got going for them is they are sold in smaller quantities than ‘grown up’ crisps. Won’t be buying again.

When I was a child (I’m old, 49!), supermarkets were a quarter of the size they are these days. When I go shopping now, I look at the layout of these huge supermarkets and see that at least half the store is actually full of crap, unhealthy shit and most of it aimed at young people and dieters. Everything in moderation. Chocolate bars, crisps, crap cereal etc are all fine eaten occasionally which is exactly what we did as kids but those foods are now the norm for so many people. They eat them all day everyday and because they are disguised as being low-fat/sugar-free/have added fibre etc people are lead to believe they have a healthy diet and can’t understand why they are putting on weight. And don’t get me on the gluten free shit! I have digestive issues and have tried so many GF stuff, most is vile and cramped full of shit. I stick to naturally GF foods now.

The issue is not necessarily what's in your food but portion control, having varied and balanced diet with plenty of fruit and veg and physical mobility.
If you don't balance up these that's when you start to get problems.
A little bit of "something nice" will not make you unhealthy or fat if you exercise and have a good varied healthy diet.

Any of those biscuits advertised for toddlers as having "no added sugar" that are packed full of malted barley (maltose, ie sugar) or concentrated grape juice (fructose, ie sugar).

@JinglingHellsBells : Smoothies are delicious and nutritious, even if they do have high sugar content. @cookiemonster2468 You do realise these two things are mutually exclusive- nutritious and high sugar content.

That's absolutely 100% not true. You are claiming that the high sugar content of something negates the nutrition, which is absolute bollocks. Of course smoothies have nutritional value. But they are, as has been endlessly pointed out, ALSO high in sugar and without the fibre etc that comes from whole fruit. So anyone drinking a smoothie absolutely does get the vitamin C etc but doesn't get the fibre and does risk having too many calories and too much sugar if they're drinking a large smoothie or having them too often.

I often point out to my DC that there's a reason the glasses for fruit juice are really small at a buffet breakfast - a small glass of orange or apple juice with breakfast is probably okay, but drinking loads of the stuff is not. stares at DS who, given half the chance, would consume the stuff in huge amounts, albeit watered down

Protein shakes are fine if you work out, especially if you’re a weight lifter which I am. I have one on the days I lift, it isn’t unhealthy. Smoothies are also fine if you’re making them yourself, not innocent ones or similar which have about 500 apples in one bottle. I have smoothies occasionally for breakfast and it’s just frozen fruit and milk, I don’t see how that could ever be described as unhealthy.

For me it’s shitty ‘diet’ versions of things and ‘low calorie’ snack bars. My friend does slimming world and she balks at me eating a banana because it’s 100 calories compared to her 50 calorie ‘slimming world bar’. Who even knows what’s in something like that…

If your pans are non stick it absolutely annihilates them

A lot of things marketed at 'healthy' seem not to be or give people the false impression that you can have more of it. Take high protein bars. Great if you are working out/ need it, not so good for my colleague (when I last worked in an office) who ate about 3/4 of them a day! He complained about not being able to lose weight, I said those bars are pretty high in cals he said 'but they are high protein, they are healthy' - not in those quantities!

Sugar free does have it's place, I have gestational diabetes and love sugar free jelly right now!

Also things marketed at Gluten Free people seem to think makes it automatically healthier. It doesn't it's just GF! Since getting gestational diabetes I have make brownies, they could be advertised as GF, Keto, no added sugar, diabetic friendly, low carb. But they are still high fat content and a treat. Which if they were marketed on a shelf would be over looked.

Moderation is key with all things.

But that drink is 25 calories. How many calories are in a glass of tap water?

I stopped buying supermarket bottles of smoothies when I read the print on the label which said that the small bottle I assumed was for one person was a two portion size.

Smoothie (full of sugar, albeit fruit sugars) instead of coke (hardly any calories thanks to the sugar tax) is not good advice in a population that is undergoing an obesity crisis…

I think portion control and everything in moderation is the only advice that works, but sadly that will not make anyone loads of money so here we are.

Many foodstuffs that contain lots of good nutrients also come with some caveats - hummus is quite calorific, fruit is sugary, meat and dairy can be high in saturated fats.

People need to take more responsibility. If you’re overweight, then the important thing is to concentrate on calories in vs calories out. If you’re malnourished then yes, you need nutritionally rich food.

Most vegetarian/vegan substitutes- laced with salt and fats.

Any margarine or ‘spread’ except butter. They are all highly processed, homogenised, emulsified, coloured, flavoured, preservative-laden crap.

Why is wholemeal bread unhealthy?

From ASDA website - picked at random

Volvic Touch of Fruit Limited Edition Apple & Blackcurrant Natural Flavoured Sugar Free Water 1.5l

Volvic Natural Mineral Water (99.7%), Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid), Natural Blackcurrant Flavouring, Natural Apple Flavouring with other Natural Flavourings, Preservative (Potassium Benzoate), Sweeteners (Acesulfame K, Sucralose)

Sugar free. Natural flavour.

But Sucralose is made by chlorinating sugar. All the 'natural flavorings' doesn't mean actual fruit juice, just something derived from a natural substance with a percentage of other substances.

You might as well have ribena, in fact you might be better with ribena.

Why is brown rice even worse?

I think the key is being able to read nutritional labels and (if needed) weighing/measuring portions. Nothing in and of itself is unhealthy (although agree marketing is misleading and I have fallen for things in the past) and it's important to know where these things fit into an individual's own dietary needs.
For someone who needs to gain weight - (homemade) smoothies can be life savers, people can often find drinking easier than eating
For someone with diabetes - artificial sweetners are amazing if they want a sweet treat
For someone who needs to lose weight - yes, diet foods CAN help because dieting is hard and they can allow (some!!) indulgence!
For someone wtih Crohn's disease - raw vegetables can be awful while being very healthy for most of us

But we do need to be more savvy and be able to unpick claims manufacturers make.
We also need to be aware that the evidence of what constitutes a healthy diet varies greatly other than generally too much sugar (especially in drinks) and processed food isn't good. If I remember correctly, it's only sugar in drinks which has been found to correlate with poor health outcomes across all countries.

I think portion control and everything in moderation is the only advice that works, but sadly that will not make anyone loads of money so here we are

Agree with this. A lot of these products marketed as healthy are not as healthy as they seem but "healthy" sells. A premium can be charged for a lot of these things therefore bringing in a big win for the manufacturers.

It's basically a bit of a racket!

My Dad died of a sudden, unexpected heart attack. He had diabetes Type 2. I did know how dangerous Type 2 can be but didn't really know enough about it. It's a horrible disease. It scared the living shit out of me - even though my diet wasn't that bad before and I do a lot of exercise. So, in discussion with my GP, I decided to cut out as much sugar as possible and reduce carbs, even though my blood sugar is normal. I just don't want to tip over into pre diabetes and then diabetes at some point.
I was shocked at how much sugar is in things and where it is hidden - eg. tomato sauces, ketchup, pasta sauces, ready meals. It's bloody everywhere. It's in low fat products. Cereals and cereal bars are absolutely full of it (never ate them anyway). Smoothies are full of it.

I cook everything from scratch now - including sauces. Yes, it's a pain in the arse but batch cooking is great and I can be sure that sugar stays out of savoury dishes completely.

Yep sadly true. I am veggie and currently trying to cut the substitutes out. I suppose they aren't claiming to be healthy though, it isn't a trick. However a lot of people seem to think they are automatically healthier than meat and might have them despite not being vegetarian..

Not if youre diabetic or have tooth decay youre not better having ribena.

I went on smoothies for a few months and was confused when my dentist asked me if I'd started having fizzy drinks regularly as my teeth had deteriorated so much. Turns out it was the smoothies, and I was only having one a day. That was enough to put me off them!

All gluten free products tend to be more expensive (processed ones before some twat tells me a carrot is GF) as they have to be made completely separately from gluten containing products in the factory so they pass on the extra cost.