Think Low Fat or Reduced Fat food Is Better? Think Again!

Hello ladies,

Recently, I have been mindful of what I put in my body .. or stomach to be precise :D. Had a chat with my sister and she told me that processed food that claimed to be low fat or reduced fat are actually more harmful to the body than the original ones. 

That fact horrified me. To be fair, we were never properly been 'food educated'. We have no clue as to how food are processed or what stuff they put in these marvellously, conveniently packed food we find in the grocery food aisle ... right? Right!

Thanks to documentary and food channels or even YouTube, we now know a bit more. Well Jamie Oliver did say in his Food Revolution series that we have to read the labels on the food packaging. If we don't understand what is written on the labels, don't buy.

Anyways, so horrified I was that I had to see it for myself. So I went to my favourite local grocer and shop a little bit more informed then I was before being on the look out for any confirmation to the everything I have heard or seen on TV. 

This is what I found ... Low fat or reduced fat processed food has more ingredients than the original ones. Simply put, the list is longer and less understandable. The more natural the product the less ingredients they have. Not to mention that they are more expensive than the normal or low fat ones.

Here are some pictures ( I enjoyed this part of my so called research )!

Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter 

The label.

The reduced fat option for weight watchers

The label. Longer list no?

So there you have it. The truth is on the labels ladies. There is more to this. I will let the video elaborate on this as I am not the expert. I do suggest that you take some time to watch this video and watch it many times if you have to.

Ok ok ..  I know that's an hour long video so if you prefer an abridged version, here it is. I find this very useful to understand. Glucose? Fructose? I do need to stress here that when he says fructose, he is not referring to the ones naturally found in fruits. When we consume fruits yes we take in fructose but we are also taking in natural fibre and vitamins along with it, so that is totally different than the artificially made fructose or isolated fructose. Just keep that in mind. Don't go cutting off eating bananas or apples and all ya. 

As for my peanut butter .. I decided to buy the natural one. It cost me more but I like the list on the label better and it comforts me to know that I have taken steps to be responsible towards my own body. It is still processed food but to me, at least it is better than the reduced fat one. 

The natural version of Skippy peanut butter spread.

And I love that I can count the ingredients used with one hand :D

The choice is yours. Do your own research and choose. Stay healthy beautiful. Let me know what you find out!

Daily nuggets:

• When I opened my natural peanut butter, there is a layer of oil that covers the butter. I think it acts as a natural preservative just like how salt is sprinkled on top of ground chili paste in Malaysia
• I have been doing yoga for the past 2 weeks and I felt 'lighter' (for lack of better word). I actually felt better and more connected with myself. Perhaps i will talk about this in length in a separate post :D
• I find it sad that people don't send out physical cards anymore. There is something special about receiving something in the mailbox instead of the daily over flooding mails in our inbox.