Are the Foods You Eat Really Fat Free?

Fat Free labels are tricky beasts.  The FDA has a weird way of regulating food labels, so while walking through your local grocery store isle, you’ll see non FDA-branded labels ranging from Fat Free, to Trans Fat Free to Low Sugar, even Heart Healthy.

What does it all mean?

The trick to understanding fat free labels or any other label for that matter is to ignore them entirely. Yes, you heard me right.  Don’t pay any attention to fat free labels, all the company is trying to do is sell their product by slathering it with little fake doctor’s notes saying, "It’s okay to eat this!"  Even when it’s not.

Fake Fat Free Foods

The trick to understanding whether a food is really fat free is to look at the nutrition label on the back, and nothing else.  There, you will see mandatory list that the FDA oversees.  Some products may actually be fat free, but won’t tell you that the item is loaded with sugars and cholesterol.

Some tricky ‘fat free’ foods include: cotton candy, Skittles, soda, sugary juices, and Popsicles.  The list goes on and on.  Why do companies label unhealthy products as being fat free?

The reason is that so many people are influenced by the fat free label that they will purchase unhealthy foods.  Companies care about their bottom line and any tactic that sells is commended.  Now, it’s also the consumer’s fault for not taking the time to understand nutrition. Fat free isn’t necessarily healthy, and with a few tips, you can learn to understand the nutrition labels.

True Fat Free Foods

A healthy food has a good balance of proteins, carbs, and fats, as well as vitamins and minerals.  Anything that is off-balance is usually unhealthy, despite the fat free labels on the front of the packaging.

Typically, you want to look for foods high in proteins and low in carbs and fats.  However, not all fats are alike.  A fat free diet is in fact unhealthy for your body.  Fats help absorb certain vitamins and regulates your body temperature as well as provide slow burning energy.

There are four types of fats: Monounsaturated, Polyunsaturated, Saturated, and Trans Fats.  Without going into the chemical composition of each, all you have to know is the Unsaturated Fats are good for you, the Saturated and Trans Fats are bad.  So, with a fat free diet, although you are not eating the unhealthy fats, you are not getting the healthy ones either. 

The best method is to stay away from fat free diets and instead eat a diet with good fats.  Good fats comes from avocados, nuts, olives, olive oil, fish, and shell fish.  Any marine animal has what’s called Omega-3 fatty acids in its body, which are healthy fats. 

Now, with a decent understanding of fats, you want to look at the nutrition labels printed on your foods to see what types of fats they contain. 

Re-Examining Carbohydrates

Now for carbohydrates. Although most fat free foods are generally healthy, there are a number of companies that sell unhealthy foods with the fat free label.  Carbohydrates, like fats, are not all make alike.  Basically, there are two types of carbs: simple and complex.

Simple carbs are basically sugars found in fruits and candies.  They are digested extremely fast and enters your blood stream.  Your pancreas has to secrete insulin in order for the sugar to enter your cells for your body to use as energy.  Because of the quick burning nature of simple sugars, you get a ‘sugar-high’ that lasts a short period of time.  Afterwards, you are hungry again.  These are the bad carbs, and even fat free foods can contain bad carbs.

The good carbs are complex carbs.  These take a long time to burn and leave you full for a much longer period.  Complex carbs are found in whole grains such as whole wheat bread and pasta.  Also, fiber is a good carbohydrate that aids in digestion.

Learning to Love Protein

Protein is the final type of food.  Generally, the more protein the food contains, the better.  Protein is found in meats, beans, soy and dairy products.  Both fatty and fat free foods contain protein.

Understanding FDA-regulated labels is the best way to eat a healthy diet.  Try not to be lured in by fat free labels on foods because many foods may contain a load of other unhealthy items.   A low fat rather than fat free diet with balanced proteins and complex carbs is much better for your health in the long run.

-KW