‘Hidden’ sources of sugar, saturated fat can destroy diets

Part of maintaining a balanced diet is knowing what to avoid — and a new study shows that some so-called “healthy” choices may be hiding an excess of added sugar and saturated fat.

Tit recommends the US government’s 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans limiting added sugar and saturated fat to less than 10% of your daily calories.

However, only 30% to 40% of adults meet this mark – and those who don’t face an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.

Why is it so hard to keep bad things to a minimum? New research from Ohio State University suggests that “hidden” resources are to blame, prompting us to unknowingly overstep our limits.

The study, published last month in the journal Nutrients, identifies obvious offenders like cheese and soft drinks and other seemingly innocent sources of saturated fat and sugar, like chicken breast and ketchup.

“Chicken breast is promoted as a food low in saturated fat, but it’s still low in saturated fat,” said first study author Christopher Taylor, an OSU professor and director of medical dietetics. “It’s helpful to know how smaller amounts of food also slowly add saturated fat stealthily to the diet.”

Taylor and his team analyzed dietary data from more than 36,300 American adults who participated in a food survey from 2005 to 2018.

The original intent was to develop a research tool to simplify dietary assessments, but the study also serves to encourage consumers to be mindful of reading food labels and alert them to surprising sources of fat and sugar and how those choices are added during a course. day of a life.

“Nearly half of adults’ intake of added sugars was from five sources: soft drinks, tea, fruit drinks, cakes and pies, and sugar and honey,” the researchers wrote in their findings. “The main sources of added sugars for people over 70 were ice cream and frozen dairy cakes, cookies and brownies, and jams, syrups and toppings.”

Tomato-based condiments, cereal bars, energy drinks and yeast breads are also contributing to increased sugar intake, the study found.

Also watch out for saturated fat in cold cuts, cream substitutes, chips and whole milk.

Using their data and findings, the team is creating an app to help people assess specific “nutrients of concern” in all foods, even those considered healthy, to make smarter, more informed dietary choices. informed.