Ingredients list
Ingredients lists are a great way of knowing whether you’re buying a whole food or not. In the scientific literature, a whole food is defined as being ‘intact’ or, even if it has been processed, having the same composition as the naturally occurring product. Take whole wheat for example. It’s inedible picked right off the grass, but when it’s ground up into whole wheat flour it becomes edible and still has the same composition as its original form.
Whole foods will usually only contain one ingredient and maybe an acidity regulator or preservative to keep bacterial growth at bay and prolong the shelf life. A highly processed food will contain many more ingredients. These are the foods that need a little more scrutiny of their label.
Checking the ingredients list will tell you what’s been added to the product, such as salt, sugar and other foods, which is particularly important if you need to avoid certain ingredients due to allergies or a health condition.
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The Healthy Eating Hub
The Healthy Eating Hub is a team of university qualified nutritionists and dietitians who are passionate about helping people develop long term healthy eating habits through offering evidenced-based and practical nutrition advice that people can put into practice straight away.
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