Vegan, all natural, gluten free—that means a product is healthy, right? Unfortunately, while those labels are accurate, they don’t mean the food is good for you. Here, learn how to outsmart confusing packaging and uncover which “health” foods to reconsider the next time you’re at checkout.
Breakfast cereal
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so a bowl of multigrain raisin bran cereal should do the trick. Well, not exactly. Cereal is convenient when you’re short on time, but it’s also an ultra-processed food that can contain preservatives, tons of sugar, and minimal protein. This may be true even when you see healthy-sounding terms like “bran” or “multigrain” in the cereal name.
On busy days when cereal is your only option, choose one with these qualities:
- at least 3 to 5 grams of fiber
- single-digit grams of sugar
- “whole” in the first ingredient, such as “whole oat”