DIRTY TRICKS

OK...I'm going to start trying to shed some light on all the ridiculous food and nutrition claims that food manufacturers use to scam the masses. 

When in doubt, follow the rule "If it can make a food claim, it's probably not healthy" because that means it's in a box and probably not real, whole food.

So let's take a look at the left pic --- Made with Real Fruit//Whole Grains//Wholesome Fiber

Now the top pic (front of box) --- No High Fructose Corn Syrup//Made with Real Fruit and Whole Grains

Sounds good, right? A single mom with three kids in tow may look at that and think, "wow, that looks pretty good, real fruit, my kids could use real fruit...that's healthy right?" So she buys it, it becomes a staple in the pantry, and the kids eat it everyday. 

Now let's breakdown that ingredients list:

1 - whole grain oats...good! That's good!

2 - Enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, folic acid)...OK, flour doesn't seem so bad, but it has a bunch of stuff "enriching" it. My advice is to get all of that enrichment in its natural state...aka in foods that actually have those things in them...NATURALLY.

3 - whole wheat flour...ok, that's ok.

4 - soybean and/or canola oil...not good. Oil (even canola and soybean) is 100% fat and does nothing for you nutritionally except give you lots of fat that will just sit on your mid-section in its pure, fat form. Read this for more info on "healthy" oils.

5 - soluble corn fiber - this is a trick, straight up. Manufactures put this term but what it really is is corn syrup...a sweetener. But man doesn't that sound great? soluble corn fiber...HAS to be healthy.

6 - sugar...no comment needed

7 - dextrose...another way they try and trick you. Dextrose is another term for glucose, which is sugar.

8 - fructose...another term for sugar

9 - calcium carbonate...a compound found in rocks, it's what causes "hard water" and is used MEDICINALLY as a calcium supplement.

10 - whey...animal protein, it's what's left after milk has been curdled, the liquid on top of the yogurt when you open the package

11 - wheat bran...hey that's good!

12 - salt...not good.

13 - cellulose...the structural component of the primary cell wall of green plants, well THAT sounds good, but wait - it's also the major constituent of paper, paperboard, card stock and textiles made from cotton and linen...and it's in your food.

14 - potassium bicarbonate...a colorless, odorless, "safe" (per the FDA) substance. It is also the only dry chemical fire suppression agent recognized by the National Fire Protection Association. Can also be used as a fungicide in farming.

15 - "natural" and artificial flavors...not food or anything you were ever meant to eat

16 - soy lecithin...an additive, it also helps as a rust inhibitor in your paint

17 - wheat gluten...protein found in wheat

18 - niacinamide...part of the vitamin B group

19 - vitamin A

20 - carrageenan...thickening and stabilizing agent, extracted from red seaweed

21 - zinc oxide...additive...also found in plastics, ceramics, glass, cement, lubricants, paints, ointments, adhesives, and sealants

22 - reduced iron...reduced iron

23 - guar gum...ground endosperm of guar beans, thickening agent

24 - vitamin b6

25 - vitamin b1

26 - vitamin b2

AND THAT'S JUST THE CRUST...

now to the "real fruit" filling...this is great

27 - invert sugar...sugar, it's a mixture of glucose and fructose

28 - corn syrup...sugar

29 - raspberry puree concentrate...the stripped down sugar of the fruit, it's another name for straight up sugar

30 - glycerin...filler and sweetener...aka sugar, also widely used in pharmaceutical formulations

31 - sugar...well, there it is...

32 - modified corn starch...thickening agent

33 - natural flavor...not natural at all, not a real food, chemical

34 - sodium alginate...salty substance that makes the "real fruit filling" feel like gel

35 - citric acid...chemical, preservative

36 - methylcellulose...chemical used as thickening agent

37 - dicalcium phosphate...chemical

38 - malic acid...food additive, to make the "raspberry fruit" taste tart

39 - caramel color...something you were never intended to eat

40 - red 40...chemical that you were never intended to eat

So...where's the "real" fruit? There is none!! 

The first five ingredients of the fruit filling are sugar! 

Manufacturers can put all these different names on sugar and trick you into thinking there's not much sugar in it because it only says sugar once in the crust and once in the filling.

And there are 40 INGREDIENTS. 

NEWSFLASH: THAT'S NOT FOOD!!!!!

Ok...if you found this eye-opening or helpful, pass it on.