It’s little secret that a LOT of the food you can buy at the supermarket is packed with the sweet stuff. But the sugar content in some products we come across even shocks us!
We recently took another undercover trip to our local shops to review the sugary landscape.
As more science on the health effects of sugar rolls in (and we rev up for our next I Quit Sugar: 8-Week Program), we thought maybe some of the regular offenders would have reduced their sugar content. And maybe, just maybe, there’d be more sugar-free foods on the shelf.
While both are true (have you spotted our new products yet?) we were still shocked by the amount of high-sugar junk. Here are 10 of the worst offenders.
1. Nestlé Health Science Sustagen Sport Chocolate (60g)
Sustagen seems to be marketed at children, convalescents and athletes, which makes no sense as it’s full of sugar, plain glucose and “flavour”. If you wanted to dose up on protein and healthy vitamins and minerals, eat real food, not this.
SUGAR TOTAL: 8½ teaspoons of sugar
2. McCain Healthy Choice Japanese Teriyaki Chicken with Brown & Wild Rice (340g)
With phrases like “very high in wholegrains” and “preservative free”, you might think this frozen dinner is indeed a healthy choice. But the fourth ingredient is brown sugar – ah McCain, you’ve done it again. Would our Cauliflower Fried Rice with Chicken tempt you instead?
SUGAR TOTAL: 4 teaspoons of sugar
3. Gippsland Dairy Blueberry Twist Yoghurt (160g)
Blueberries, yoghurt – where can you go wrong? Added sugar and reconstituted apple juice, that’s where. We’re surprised they could fit so much sugar into a snack-sized pot. Buy full-fat sugar-free yoghurt and add your own blueberries.
SUGAR TOTAL: 6½ teaspoons of sugar
4. Uncle Toby’s Oats Quick Cups Creamy Vanilla (50g serve)
Oats are naturally sweet, so we fail to see why Uncle Toby’s felt the need to add sugar. Also, this “quick cup” was such a small serving that the average adult would have to go back for seconds. Try our Super Simple Porridge for a recipe that’s worth the extra cooking time.
SUGAR TOTAL: 3 teaspoons of sugar
5. Up&Go Energize High Protein Choc Flavour (250ml)
With the words “slow release energy”, “high protein” and “health wellbeing” emblazoned on the packet, we hate to think how many teenage boys are guzzling this every morning. And this gets 4.5 Health Stars? Try a veggie-packed smoothie instead (you can still have chocolate flavour).
SUGAR TOTAL: 5 teaspoons of sugar
6. 100% True Fruit Tropical Fruit Salad Bar (20g)
These bars boast “no added sugar”, but we suppose you don’t need to add sugar to sugar. Which is exactly what dried apple, pineapple, “bannana”, mango and passionfruit are. If you want a natural sweet hit without the concentrated sugar, always go for fresh whole fruit.
SUGAR TOTAL: 3 teaspoons of sugar
7. Edens Gluten Free Sesame Bar (45g)
As a nut-free alternative, we can see how this sesame bar could even up in kids’ lunch boxes. But while sesame seeds are high in calcium, we’re pretty sure corn syrup, sweetened condensed milk and honey will negate any health benefits. Why not try a snack pack of raw carrots and tahini dip instead?
SUGAR TOTAL: 5 teaspoons of sugar
8. The Juice Lab Gimme Green Pressed Juice (400ml)
With cucumber, spinach, kale and chlorophyll, this wouldn’t look out of place in any health store. Until you check the ingredients and find out it’s just 5.3 per cent cucumber, 2 per cent spinach, 1.8 percent kale and 0.18 per cent chlorophyll. Hey The Juice Lab, you know you can fit a whole cup of vegetables into a green smoothie?
SUGAR TOTAL: 8½ teaspoons of sugar
9. Rush Double Espresso Iced Coffee (400ml)
It says 30 per cent less sugar than regular flavoured milk. Sorry, but that’s still not good enough. A quick squizz at the nutritional panel showed that sugar was the second ingredient, and, not wanting to stop there, they added more sweeteners. What’s wrong with a normal coffee?
SUGAR TOTAL: 6½ teaspoons of sugar
10. 247 Yoghurt Covered Apricot and Berry Mix (70g)
If there were ever a moment in our undercover mission which warranted a Sherlock-style whipping out of a magnifying glass, it’s this. We could not believe our eyes when we saw how much sugar was in this “snack”. 247, you might have to reconsider your “healthy all day, every day” tagline.
SUGAR TOTAL: 12 teaspoons of sugar
What’s the most shocking sugar content you’ve seen recently?
We originally published this article in May 2016. We updated it in July 2016.
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