Almost 5 in 10 ‘natural’ products are high in saturated fat, sugar and/or salt, new research shows.
LiveLighter, a Western Australia based program, analysed the nutritional quality of 331 supermarket foods with the words ‘natural’ or ‘nature’ on the packaging and found that 154 (47 per cent) were not a core part of a healthy diet, as recommended by the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating.
Despite this, more than three in five Australian adults said they were more likely to buy food or drinks described as ‘natural’.
LiveLighter Victoria campaign manager and accredited practicing dietitian Alison McAleese warned that natural doesn’t always equal healthy.
“Just because something says it’s natural, doesn’t mean it’s good for you,” McAleese said.
“The word ‘natural’ can be very hard to define and in Australia there are no clear guidelines for its use on food and drink products, leaving manufacturers free to use the word in a way consumers might not expect.”
Of the 97 ‘natural’ foods found in the snack food aisles, almost 9 in 10 were found to be unhealthy and should not regularly be part of a healthy diet.
“We found that ‘natural’ is most commonly used on products like snack bars, muesli bars, chips, lollies, crackers and biscuits located in the snack food aisles of the supermarket,” McAleese said.
“Unfortunately, the majority of these items are high in saturated fat, sugar and/or salt and should not be eaten on a regular basis.”
Some brands use the words natural or nature in a product name or to describe a product, such as Heinz Organic Tomato Ketchup with ‘natural’ ingredients and Ajitas Vege Chips ‘Natural’ flavour, while others go as far as to feature ‘natural’ in their company name, for example the Natural Chip Company and The Natural Confectionery Co.
Heart Foundation Victoria Healthy Living manager Roni Beauchamp said if you’re looking for a snack that is truly natural and good for you, steer clear of the products in the snack aisles entirely.
“Stick to the outer aisles of the supermarket where you’ll find an abundance of nutritious foods to snack on, like seasonal fruit, vegetables like celery and carrots which you can cut up and enjoy with hummus or ricotta cheese and reduced-fat plain or Greek yoghurt,” Beauchamp said.
“Also consider doing your food shopping at greengrocers, markets, butchers and fish mongers, where you are more likely to be presented with less processed, healthier options.”
