"Preservative-free" "No artificial colors"... Consumers are easily attracted by the "self-selling and boasting" type information on food packaging. How should we look at these tempting statements in advertising and packaging? Here are some representative statements to dissect the subtext and the truth of the product -
Statement 1: No preservatives
It contains no preservatives, but it does not say that it does not contain other food additives. Antioxidants, flavors, pigments, colorants, fresheners and the like may be included. That said, the absence of preservatives does not guarantee that it is in a "natural" state.
Many foods naturally do not use preservatives, such as canned food, such as some foods with high salt and sugar, and some extremely dry foods such as instant noodles, noodles, etc. Because the can can completely kill the bacteria and spores inside during the production process, and at the same time seal it, so that the bacteria outside cannot enter, it does not need preservatives. Without water, bacteria cannot multiply, and large amounts of salt and sugar also act as preservatives.
Still, salt and sugar are too high, worse than containing preservatives. Because a large amount of salt is much more harmful to health than a few tenths of a percent preservative. For example, some soy sauces, sauces, pickles, etc. claim not to contain preservatives, but they are usually products that are particularly strong and even covered with sugar. Therefore, "this product has no preservatives" should not be the main reason for consumers to give priority to a certain product.
Statement 2: No artificial colors
This means that there are still pigments in it, but these pigments are not synthetic pigments, but extracted from natural raw materials. For example, extracts containing some carotenoids, red yeast pigments, lac red and other pigments derived from natural foods.
For most consumers, natural colors are more reassuring, but in the extraction process, it is not excluded that trace amounts of organic solvent residues will be caused. As long as it meets the relevant product standards, it is not necessary to mind this. But the problem is that the thick color of the product is brought about by the pigment, which means that the raw materials in it are not so "natural".
For example, the red or green "juice" products commonly found in shopping malls look like they are concentrated in fruit, and the packaging is painted with large images of fruits. However, after carefully reading the raw material instructions, it was found that it contained only about 20% of the original juice. In other words, 80% of them are mixed with water, sugar, flavors, colors, thickeners, etc. Despite the use of natural colors, it still misleads consumers into thinking that it is stronger than 100% fruit juice.
Myth 3: Contains no sucrose
This is often seen in pasty products, or cookies, snacks and the like. Their packaging says "no sucrose", that is, no white sugar that we eat every day. Middle-aged and elderly people, diabetics and obese people are all easily attracted to this description. In fact, this is really a big trap.
It's not just sucrose that can make blood sugar rise rapidly. Refined starch has caused blood sugar to rise fast enough, and maltodextrin, maltose syrup, glucose syrup, fructose glucose syrup, etc., which are made of starch as raw materials, are all worse than sucrose. These ingredients are often seen in products that claim to be "sucrose-free". If diabetics choose them, it is really better to eat rice directly.
In terms of nutritional value, the absence of sucrose does not mean that the nutrient content is higher than other products. If you don't add sucrose, what do you fill it with? Nothing more than starch, dextrin, oil and the like, in addition to providing energy to raise blood sugar, it is not helpful to people. The problem is that they often give the illusion of "high-end" and "nourishing".
Myth 4: No MSG
Western products prefer to do "no MSG" this claim, it seems that MSG is a flood beast. Indeed, there are a small number of people who are more sensitive to sodium glutamate in MONOS glutamate and will produce a series of adverse reactions, so there are many so-called MSG-free products that have come into being. However, many experts suggest that not containing MONOS does not mean that it does not contain sodium glutamate, nor does it mean that it does not contain artificial freshening ingredients.
This is because there are too many varieties of fresheners used in the food industry today. In addition to monosodium glutamate, there are sodium nucleotides, sodium organic acid, chicken essence, yeast extract, plant protein hydrolysate and so on. A variety of umami hydrolysates and extracts contain quite a lot of sodium glutamate, in fact, it is not much different from monosodium glutamate. Those who are afraid of MSG and those who need to control the sodium content of their food should look carefully.
However, not all claims are meaningless. For example, a vermicelli product says "no alum", at least indicating that eating it will not be harmed by aluminum. For example, I would like to have a Chinese meat product that claims that "this product does not contain nitrites", because such a product is too difficult to find now.