Hi guys! When do my grocery shopping, I make it a point to read the label on what the contents of a product is. It's important for me that the food I'm buying is low in fat, sugar and cholesterol. I usually go for the items which have a shorter shelf life because I know the preservatives are lower and as much as possible, I go with the fresh ones to avoid preserved foods. Do you also read the labels of the items you buy in the grocery store? What turns you off when you look at the labels?
I used to not pay as much attention but these days I'm growing more and more conscious, especially once I found out how unhealthy some of my favorite items were. For example, I've been eating instant ramen since I was a kid and it's only now that I'm finding out how insane the amount of sodium in each packet was. Now I don't buy them anymore and if I ever indulge it will take Me a long time before I buy another as opposed to how I previously consumed it which was almost daily.
Watching preservatives is a good idea. I, too, am realizing the benefits of going preservative-free. Calories have always been my concern. These days, I also have to look for iron and potassium content.
I've wanted to do this practice a for a long time now but every time I read labels, I just get confused with what's written on it. I don't know if the things listed there are healthy or not, and I'm also not sure what amount is "okay" and what is "too much". Hence, I still buy products that I need to buy without knowing if it causes my body harm simply because I don't have an idea of the things listed on the label. If I learn about them, then sure I would utilize it to buy better ingredients but I just feel so darn lazy to just even search the net for articles regarding those stuff.
Labels are there for your to read, but at times understanding them can be a challenge. At least there is information if you want to know, if you choose not to read it, and then find out there are ingredients that are not good, you only have yourself to blame. Compulsory labeling only came into effect a couple of decades ago. Back in the 60s and 70s there were no labels, with any details, so these days you have a choice. Personally if it takes me too long to read the ingredients then that's not good and I put it back, but as a vegetarian I've been checking labels for decades.
Yes, I read labels. I try to purchase things that don't have too many ingredients in it and things I can pronounce. I don't always follow my rules, but I'm doing a pretty decent job. I can honestly say, that 65% to 70% of my purchases are non processed foods. Occasionally, I might buy those Oreo cookies, the Ramen Noodles, hot dogs and other processed foods, but I still read labels.
I have to admit I only sometimes stop and read the food labels. My son has an allergy to cashews and pistachios so if I think that the item may contain nuts I'll read for the two that he is allergic to. When I do read the food label I'm usually looking for calories or sugar content of an item. I also keep an eye out for ingredients I can't read as well. Reading food labels is important as a consumer to be aware of what you are buying and eating. It can also help you make smarter food choices. It's actually part of the health curriculum in Ontario.
I sometimes read the labels, and then there are times I don't read the labels. I remember one time I picked up a Gatorade, or could have been a Powerade. I don't remember which one it was. But yeah I took it home without reading the label. Then I took a sip of it, it was SO nasty but it looked like the ones I usually get. I read the label; it said it had milk in it. So I thought that maybe that was why it tasted horribly different. It could have been something else that made it taste bad but I don't know. I just know it was so bad that I had to wash my mouth out with water. I got one for my brother too, so he was also rinsing his mouth too. It left a bad after taste as well haha. So yeah lesson learned to read the labels first...
Sometimes I do the read the label, however, most times I do not. I admit, however, that reading the label is the sensible thing to do because you may be alerted to the presence of substances you probably should not ingest. Many people will say they don't bother to read the labels because they don't really trust the information.
I read the information for a number of reasons. Firstly, I have food allergies so I need to know the products I'm eating or purchasing don't have anything in them that I'm allergic to. Then, I like to make sure that there isn't anything Genetically Modified in the products I eat because personally I don't trust them. I also like to keep additives and E Numbers to a minimum. I prefer all natural products so this is something I tend to look for as well. I also avoid products with Licorice in them for the simple fact that I despise the stuff and it puts me off if I can taste it in something.
Yes, I read labels but it's a recent thing, I was diagnosed with stomach ulcers and was advised by the doctor to avoid food or drink with acid. After I started reading labels I was really surprised by just how many food items have chemicals in them, I suppose it forced me to be more conscious about what I eat. It never hurts to be knowledgeable about food.
It's a bit of a chore, but because the older I've got, I've started taking my health a lot more seriously, I do take the time to read the labels. It's not so much for the calories, because I don't obsess over that at all. What I look out for is the amount of fats, sugars and salts in my food. I also check to see if there are a lot of E-numbers and all that. Those are the things that really put me off buying some of the food stuffs.
I never used to be someone who had to read labels, but due to recent health issues I have kind of been forced to watch what I eat and what I don't eat. I probably don't read labels too often, because a lot of the foods that are not going to be good for me are obvious, as they are processed. But I will read to see if products contain ingredients that I need.
I hardly ever buy processed foods or spices that have any preservatives in them. That's why I hardly ever read the labels of anything else I buy. In any case if you are buying a certain product and you compared the "nutritional facts" labels slapped on them by the different companies there won't be too huge a difference.
Yes, I do read the labels because I try to get as much nutrition as possible in a cheapest way. Without looking at the labels, it is very easy to think that you can only get certain nutrition by buying certain products or by buying more expensive products. By examining the labels and the nutrition facts, I think I can decide which food I should cut and which food I should buy more. I don't have allergies or something similar but if I were to cook for someone, I try to be considerate of their preferences as well.
I read the labels only of the new products. But for the usual grocery items I guy like cooking oil or canned goods, I never read the label anymore. For new products, what I check first is the manufacturer's origin. Like the Libby's corned beef with a different design for the label, I checked on the origin and it was from Argentina (I thought it was manufactured in US).
I never read the labels of food products before, but now that I buy some groceries already, I only read the contents part to see if I will be able to save money buying this or that item because it has more content.
Checking ingredient labels is something I've always done - mainly because - as I'm extremely limited in terms of what I can eat, as well as restricted to eating only totally natural foods and also suffer with severe allergies - I don't have any option - as even though I don't ever buy processed foods - as some natural foods and other household products do come in packaging or wrappers and most manufacturers do occasionally change or add additional ingredients from time to time - although somewhat time consuming - checking the ingredients is something that I have to do every single time I buy anything - as its the only way to ensure that I don't suffer any adverse effects. I would however just say that - apart from wishing that they do away with all the other labels - which as each manufacturer has their own ideas on nutritional values are generally meaningless and rarely ever accurate - so that the ingredient labels could at least be made large enough to read without the aid of a magnifying glass - I think everyone looking to eat healthy foods - would be well advised to read the ingredient labels - particularly as - most foods that are now dressed up and marketed as being " healthy " are normally imposters and generally anything but healthy - in fact in some cases it would probably be way healthier - to eat the wrapper or carton than it would be to eat the contents.
I definitely do read the labels before I buy new products. I got in the habit of it for my husband, who was born with kidney problems and needed to be very careful with his diet. It's a good habit to have, though, you'd be amazed all the different ingredients that go into even basic foods. I'm not really turned off by specific ingredients or anything like that, for the most part, but I do keep an eye on calories and sugars, especially in drinks.
I always read labels now days. I got to watch my cholesterol and sugar intake too and found that as you read labels you'll find many good food to buy. Reading labels has taught me a lot though it's a bit time consuming. I like to get and stay healthier so I read a lot of labels too like most of you!
