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Is Your 'Healthy Food' Really Healthy? Nutritionist Lists Items That Contain 'Loads Of Hidden Sugar'

Nutritionist Pooja Malhotra said it is not surprising to see many food brands using a small amount of some healthy, whole or natural food, adding lots of sugar and sugar derivatives and other additives to it and market them as natural or healthy

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Healthy diet comprises combination of different types of foods

"Health is wealth". Many people around the world take this popular saying seriously, putting major emphasis on following a healthy nutritious diet plan that protects them from several chronic noncommunicable illnesses like heart disease, diabetes and cancer. The basic essential for a healthy diet is eating a variety of foods, but less salt, and sugars as well as saturated and industrially-produced trans-fats. But a question that continues to put many in confusing situations is whether your "healthy food" is really healthy or not. With profits in mind, often food companies end up selling items that have only a "small amount of some healthy ingredient," Nutritionist Pooja Malhotra said.

"Because profits motivate businesses, it's not surprising to find many food companies use a small amount of some healthy, whole or natural food, add lots of sugar and sugar derivatives and other additives, and market their food items as real, whole, natural or healthy," Malhotra said in a video posted on Instagram.

A post shared by Pooja Malhotra (@nutritionistpoojamalhotra)

She further went on to highlight some of the food items that are "cleverly" as healthy.

Among the food items mentioned by her include:

1. Breakfast cereals

2. Granola bars

3. Energy bars

4. Sweetened yoghurts

5. Fruit juices

6. Sports drink

7. Brown bread

8. Drink premixes (Iced tea etc)

"FOODS THAT SEEM HEALTHY BUT AREN'T- The food industry cleverly includes a small amount of some healthy ingredient and package their products as ‘whole' or ‘healthy'," the nutritionist wrote in caption.

She further pointed out that at the receiving end is the "naive consumer, who rarely reads food labels, shells out a lot of money and gets addicted to these so called 'healthy foods'."

Claiming that the items mentioned by her have "loads of hidden sugars in them," Malhotra also shared a simple thumb rule that could help people in identifying what is healthy for them and what not. 

She said, "One simple thumb rule to follow would be -- If it comes from a plant, eat it. If it is manufactured in a plant, don't eat."

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a healthy diet comprises combination of different types of foods, including staples like cereals (wheat, barley, maize or rice) along with starchy tubers or roots (potato, etc). Further, it should include fruits and vegetables.

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