come meet the food detective!

Re: come meet the food detective!

What is in a label? For starters there is a whole lot of stuff that I don’t understand, some of which I can barely pronounce.  I have always known that ingredients, calories and nutrition information are on most of the packages I load into my shopping cart at the grocery store week after week. Recently I decided to use the information available to help make the healthiest choices possible for my family and me. As my interest in deciphering the contents of my pantry cupboard increased, the need to seek assistance became apparent.

Luckily this pod recognizes the importance of providing its’ readers with a chance to share and gain valuable insight pertaining to diet and nutrition.  It is with this goal in mind, that a new feature called the Food Detectives will be offered.  Readers are invited to respond to a new question appearing in each issue.   The names of those readers whose good detective work resulted in finding the correct answer will be printed in the issue that follows.

I look forward to sharing information and research with everybody who shares an interest in determining and promoting healthy food choices.  I may never be able to pronounce some of the ingredients listed on the labels, but I do look forward to knowing that the only things that will end up in that shopping cart are good choices for the pantry cupboard, the lunch boxes and the dinner table.

Best of luck solving this issues Food Detective mystery!

Which of these ingredients has a direct and proven relationship between diets high in its content and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels, promoting an increased risk of coronary heart disease?

Polyunsaturated fats,  Monounsaturated fats or Trans fats

we are starting with one of the easiest questions, i promise they get a bit more challenging and imforative - i'll post one per month :)

Re: come meet the food detective!

Answer:

Transfats

Trans fats and saturated fats have negative effects on cholesterol levels, promoting an increase risk of the leading cause of death in the United States, coronary heart disease.
Consumers can identify trans fat by reading the ingredients on food labels.  Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil and shortening are all ingredients that are trans fats.   Trans fats promote an increased risk of coronary heart disease.


Trans fats and saturated fats have negative effects on cholesterol levels, promoting an increase risk of the leading cause of death in the United States, coronary heart disease.   Food labels must identify trans fats.  Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil and shortening are all ingredients that are trans fats. Trans fat can be found in vegetable shortenings, some type of margarine, crackers, cookies, and many snacks. This month’s detective work will come in handy when shopping for healthy options to add to those school lunch boxes!


Good luck solving our next mystery and remember if you don’t like what’s on the label, it doesn’t have to make it to the shopping cart.

Which ingredient did Dr. George Bray’s 2004 study link to obestity?

Polyunsaturated fats, high fructose corn syrup, malt

Re: come meet the food detective!

here is a new question:

Re: come meet the food detective!

sodium benzoate is the additive also found in automotive anti-freeze products, yummy!  it can be found in foods like salad dressing, soft drinks, jams and fruit juices.  i have noticed it in some brands of hummus.

when combined with ascorbic acid, sodium benzoate can form benzene, a known carcinogen.  read the labels, if you want to say no this stuff!

ok here's another question:

which common grocery item can contain highly controversial artifical hormones that do not have to be identified to consumers?

Re: come meet the food detective!

The common grocery item that uses highly controversial artificial growth hormones in production is milk.  There are currently no requirements for the labeling of milk that comes from cows treated with the hormones known as rBGH, rBST or the trade name Posilac.

Recently, several large dairy producers and food companies have refused to produce and/or purchase dairy that comes sources that use bovine growth hormones.  If you would like to avoid dairy products produced by farms that use the hormones, then look for products with labels that state,” rBGH-free, rBST-free” or “from cows not treated with artificial growth hormone.”

Good luck answering this month’s question!  If you are concerned about the quality and safety of the food you feed to your family and friends, read and understand the labels and put your worries to an end!

What ingredient do American’s consume large quantities of in the form of soft drinks, fruit flavored drinks, and other processed foods that are often high in calories and low in nutritional value?

Sodium Benzoate, High-fructose corn syrup, Calcium Sulfate

Re: come meet the food detective!

I vote hfcs??pe

Re: come meet the food detective!

yes peace eagle you are correct! - 

Re: come meet the food detective!

Ohmsmom,

I used to have a lot of trouble drinking milk about 10 - 15 years ago, so I switched to soy, until I noticed I have a soy allergy. I eased back into drinking milk from untreated cows, and have not had the problems I had consuming regular milk.

Thanks for the information on growth hormones in milk.

Andrea

Re: come meet the food detective!

wow, that leads to more food for thought.  do you think the allergy to milk could have been to growth hormones and the allergy to soy could be to GMO soy?

i suspect there is far more detective work out there, than meets the untrained eye……..

Re: come meet the food detective!

It also may have just been my body at the time. I was in depths of discovering I had lupus back then. I am sure that the SLE had some effect on what I was able to eat well and not. Yes, much more detective work would need to be done to really know the answers.

Re: come meet the food detective!

eat well and stay well :)