NEW DELHI: Walk through the aisles of any grocery superstore, and as you explore the massive range of packaged food that surrounds you from every corner, you might think you've stepped into a hub for all that is healthy. Colourful labels on boxes of cream cookies scream "sugar-free", chocolate cereal bars are "made with wholegrains", there are "fat-free" gummy bears and licorice sticks, and "all natural" fruit juices. It seems almost too hard to go wrong.
But behind each claim, no matter how boldly displayed on package labels, is the fine print that questions its legitimacy, and begs to ask - just how healthy is what you're eating everyday? "Most claims on labels are incorrect, not scientifically proven, or highly exaggerated," says Dr Anoop Misra, director, Fortis-C-DOC Centre of Excellence for Diabetes, Metabolic Diseases and Endocrinology. "Unrelated claims also tend to be misleading. Candy is obviously fat-free, but advertising that makes consumers overlook the fact that it is pure sugar," adds fitness expert Raghav Pande.
He also gives the example of simple breakfast cereal. Sure, it says it's made with whole grains, rich in fibre and other nutrients, and will help battle the bulge, but a look at the list of ingredients, printed in small letters at the back of the box, suggests otherwise. "Most cereal is packed with sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and additives, which are not part of any healthy diet," says Pande, adding that all processed foods are made for higher shelf life, and in the process, real nutrition is destroyed.
But what makes packaged food unhealthy also makes it more in demand. "People have little time to prepare healthy meals, and end up consuming a lot of packed food. It's all about convenience," says Dr Misra. "They don't realize, or can't help the fact, that the food they are consuming is full of preservatives, carbohydrates and fats, and without any redeeming nutritional quality," he adds.
Rphit Duggal, who runs an imports business, only recently began to read between the lines. "I would often get swayed by all the claims made on labels, but when I became serious about losing weight, I decided to educate myself. I realized that packaged food is not a healthy form of eating," says Duggal, who has since reduced his consumption of processed foods.
Even so, the industry is thriving. Accounting for 32% of the total food market in India (according to latest figures available at the Ministry of Food Processing Industries' website), the processed food market is only set to grow with increased urbanisation. With 100% foreign direct investment allowed in the sector, the Confederation of Indian Industry estimates potential of attracting $33 billion investment in ten years.
And in a city where studies have consistently shown high levels of obesity, misleading claims only add to a bigger problem. A recent study, jointly conducted by Diabetes Foundation (India), National Diabetes Obesity Cholesterol Foundation (N-DOC), and Fortis, and published in the Scientific Journal September last year, reveals about half were obese, 51.6% had high LDL cholesterol, and 68.9% had abdominal obesity.
Though the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India set labeling and packaging regulations, and food standards, there is still grey area that the industry often exploits. "The laws in our country are excellent and technically sound, but there needs to be more clarity on application of law. Clarity comes with judgments, but that doesn't happen here because there are no convictions," says Bejon Misra, former member of FSSAI, and founder of Healthy You Foundation.
He says that since consumers are the most vulnerable - helpless, unaware, and often without the resources to take on offending companies - the government needs to be more proactive. "They need to have education programmes through radio, television, and other media, in regional languages as well to familiarize consumers with labeling terms. At present, they're overloaded with information they don't understand," he says.
Following a National Conclave on Defining Healthy Food and Beverages in 2010, his foundation proposed a front-of-pack labeling system, along the lines of an international model currently accepted in about 50 countries, to make it easier for consumers to identify nutritious food. If passed, any food that qualifies as healthy, based on mandatory requirements, will carry a logo at the front of the package. But the proposal is yet to take off.
The problem here doesn't end with Indian processed goods, as labeling regulations worldwide have shown ambiguity. Claims like "made with real fruit", "made with whole grains", "lightly sweetened", and "good source of fibre", are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration either, says a report by consumer advocacy group, Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Common food label claims to be wary of
Made with whole-wheat/Wholegrain/
Picture yourself sitting with your morning cup of coffee, biting into a toasted slice of wholewheat bread. You might feel proud of your "healthy" choice, but a closer look at the ingredients may reveal otherwise. Since no regulation controls the amount of wholewheat flour that needs to be in baked goods for them to be labeled as, that slice of bread could easily have more refined flour than anything else. The same holds true for wholegrain claims. Multigrain also seems to tantamount to whole-wheat or wholegrain, but it just means that several grains have been used to prepare the item, whole or refined
Low-fat/Fat free
You're standing in line to pay your grocery bills, and at the checkout counter is a colourful bag of candy, screaming out to you. And it says fat free! If it sems too good to be true, that's because it is. Fat in labels simply means sources of vegetable, animal, or milk fat. So while it's entirely possible the candy you're reaching out for is fat free, the vast amount of sugar in it will negate any diet
Made with real fruit
Candy, beverages, cereal, and snacks often claim to contain "real fruit", and though there's no denying that fruit is good for you, the kind that comes in packaged products is certainly not. The content of real fruit in the items is mostly negligible, and usually in the form of highly processed fruit juice concentrate, which may as well be sugar
Trans-fat free
There's enough hype around trans-fat -- they raise bad cholesterol (LDL), lower good cholesterol (HDL), and are there in almost all processed foods to extend shelf life. So anything without trans-fat must be good, right? But for a product to be labeled as trans fat free, the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labeling) Regulations, 2011, states that there needs to be less than 0.2 grams of trans fat per serving. Eating more than a single serving a day over several days could easily make you consume more trans-fat than you think. And trans-fat free doesn't mean the product cannot contain saturated fats, which are equally bad
Serving size
This is one gimmick that even the most conscious consumer falls for. The calories, fat, or sugar content of a product may seem pretty reasonable, but they can quickly add up when the serving size suggested is unrealistic. Because, honestly, who stops at just two cookies, or half a cup of ice cream?
Educate yourself
Adjust all nutritional values according to the amount you actually consume Stay away from products containing hydrogenated oils. Hydrogenation converts healthy, unsaturated fats into trans-fat Check for added sugars - corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, dehydrated cane juice, fruit juice concentrate, barley malt syrup, maltodextrin, and usually anything ending in 'ose' Remember ingredients are listed in descending order by of their composition by weight or volume Consume as much whole food as possible. Otherwise stick to products with ingredients that you understand
But behind each claim, no matter how boldly displayed on package labels, is the fine print that questions its legitimacy, and begs to ask - just how healthy is what you're eating everyday? "Most claims on labels are incorrect, not scientifically proven, or highly exaggerated," says Dr Anoop Misra, director, Fortis-C-DOC Centre of Excellence for Diabetes, Metabolic Diseases and Endocrinology. "Unrelated claims also tend to be misleading. Candy is obviously fat-free, but advertising that makes consumers overlook the fact that it is pure sugar," adds fitness expert Raghav Pande.
He also gives the example of simple breakfast cereal. Sure, it says it's made with whole grains, rich in fibre and other nutrients, and will help battle the bulge, but a look at the list of ingredients, printed in small letters at the back of the box, suggests otherwise. "Most cereal is packed with sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and additives, which are not part of any healthy diet," says Pande, adding that all processed foods are made for higher shelf life, and in the process, real nutrition is destroyed.
But what makes packaged food unhealthy also makes it more in demand. "People have little time to prepare healthy meals, and end up consuming a lot of packed food. It's all about convenience," says Dr Misra. "They don't realize, or can't help the fact, that the food they are consuming is full of preservatives, carbohydrates and fats, and without any redeeming nutritional quality," he adds.
Rphit Duggal, who runs an imports business, only recently began to read between the lines. "I would often get swayed by all the claims made on labels, but when I became serious about losing weight, I decided to educate myself. I realized that packaged food is not a healthy form of eating," says Duggal, who has since reduced his consumption of processed foods.
Even so, the industry is thriving. Accounting for 32% of the total food market in India (according to latest figures available at the Ministry of Food Processing Industries' website), the processed food market is only set to grow with increased urbanisation. With 100% foreign direct investment allowed in the sector, the Confederation of Indian Industry estimates potential of attracting $33 billion investment in ten years.
And in a city where studies have consistently shown high levels of obesity, misleading claims only add to a bigger problem. A recent study, jointly conducted by Diabetes Foundation (India), National Diabetes Obesity Cholesterol Foundation (N-DOC), and Fortis, and published in the Scientific Journal September last year, reveals about half were obese, 51.6% had high LDL cholesterol, and 68.9% had abdominal obesity.
Though the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India set labeling and packaging regulations, and food standards, there is still grey area that the industry often exploits. "The laws in our country are excellent and technically sound, but there needs to be more clarity on application of law. Clarity comes with judgments, but that doesn't happen here because there are no convictions," says Bejon Misra, former member of FSSAI, and founder of Healthy You Foundation.
He says that since consumers are the most vulnerable - helpless, unaware, and often without the resources to take on offending companies - the government needs to be more proactive. "They need to have education programmes through radio, television, and other media, in regional languages as well to familiarize consumers with labeling terms. At present, they're overloaded with information they don't understand," he says.
Following a National Conclave on Defining Healthy Food and Beverages in 2010, his foundation proposed a front-of-pack labeling system, along the lines of an international model currently accepted in about 50 countries, to make it easier for consumers to identify nutritious food. If passed, any food that qualifies as healthy, based on mandatory requirements, will carry a logo at the front of the package. But the proposal is yet to take off.
The problem here doesn't end with Indian processed goods, as labeling regulations worldwide have shown ambiguity. Claims like "made with real fruit", "made with whole grains", "lightly sweetened", and "good source of fibre", are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration either, says a report by consumer advocacy group, Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Common food label claims to be wary of
Made with whole-wheat/Wholegrain/
Picture yourself sitting with your morning cup of coffee, biting into a toasted slice of wholewheat bread. You might feel proud of your "healthy" choice, but a closer look at the ingredients may reveal otherwise. Since no regulation controls the amount of wholewheat flour that needs to be in baked goods for them to be labeled as, that slice of bread could easily have more refined flour than anything else. The same holds true for wholegrain claims. Multigrain also seems to tantamount to whole-wheat or wholegrain, but it just means that several grains have been used to prepare the item, whole or refined
Low-fat/Fat free
You're standing in line to pay your grocery bills, and at the checkout counter is a colourful bag of candy, screaming out to you. And it says fat free! If it sems too good to be true, that's because it is. Fat in labels simply means sources of vegetable, animal, or milk fat. So while it's entirely possible the candy you're reaching out for is fat free, the vast amount of sugar in it will negate any diet
Made with real fruit
Candy, beverages, cereal, and snacks often claim to contain "real fruit", and though there's no denying that fruit is good for you, the kind that comes in packaged products is certainly not. The content of real fruit in the items is mostly negligible, and usually in the form of highly processed fruit juice concentrate, which may as well be sugar
Trans-fat free
There's enough hype around trans-fat -- they raise bad cholesterol (LDL), lower good cholesterol (HDL), and are there in almost all processed foods to extend shelf life. So anything without trans-fat must be good, right? But for a product to be labeled as trans fat free, the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging and Labeling) Regulations, 2011, states that there needs to be less than 0.2 grams of trans fat per serving. Eating more than a single serving a day over several days could easily make you consume more trans-fat than you think. And trans-fat free doesn't mean the product cannot contain saturated fats, which are equally bad
Serving size
This is one gimmick that even the most conscious consumer falls for. The calories, fat, or sugar content of a product may seem pretty reasonable, but they can quickly add up when the serving size suggested is unrealistic. Because, honestly, who stops at just two cookies, or half a cup of ice cream?
Educate yourself
Adjust all nutritional values according to the amount you actually consume Stay away from products containing hydrogenated oils. Hydrogenation converts healthy, unsaturated fats into trans-fat Check for added sugars - corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, dehydrated cane juice, fruit juice concentrate, barley malt syrup, maltodextrin, and usually anything ending in 'ose' Remember ingredients are listed in descending order by of their composition by weight or volume Consume as much whole food as possible. Otherwise stick to products with ingredients that you understand
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