If there’s one thing anyone watching their weight wants to avoid, it’s sugar. There are some foods, though, that actually contain sugar contrary to your expectation, and would be best to cut out if you’re being careful about gaining pounds.
1. Pasta sauces. You add them to give your pasta a savoury punch, but these sauces actually have a lot of sugar. Half a cup of pasta sauce has about the same amount of sugar as a chocolate-chip cookie – that’s between 6-12 grams. It’s a good idea to check the label and choose a sauce that’s low in sugar content; if you must have pasta while on a diet, that is.
2. Yoghurt. It’s a health food, full of protein and calcium, but steer clear of the flavored kind. Even when labelled ‘low-fat’, a cup-serving can be loaded with up to 30 gms of sugar.
3. Granola Bars. They’re synonymous with the phrase ‘healthy snack’, but if you check the label, you’ll see red-flag items like fructose, corn syrup, brown sugar, dextrose and honey. Some bars ramp up sugar content even higher with their yogurt or chocolate coating.
4. Coleslaw. Don’t feel too good next time you’re munching on this ‘healthy’ side-dish when dining out. A regular-size helping in a fast food restaurant contains about 15 gms of sugar. If you really must have coleslaw, prepare a sugar-free one at home. Salad dressings like French or Thousand Island are also bound to contain sugar, so opt for lemon, olive oil or vinaigrette instead.
5. Iced Tea. Make sugar-free iced tea at home to carry on the go. All popular brands of the flavored variety in the market, like lemon or peach, are loaded with sugar, about 32 gms per bottle. A glass of apple juice, by comparison, has about 25 gms. If you really want a healthy, sugar-free drink, though, it’s best to stick to plain water, which can only do good, no harm.