These days, supermarkets and stores offer drinks and food products with “lower in sugar” and “lower in salt” options. Choose these healthier options whenever they are available.
Make Healthier Food Choices With the Help of Symbols
With the Healthier Choice Symbol, we can easily find food products that contain more healthy nutrients like wholegrains and calcium. But besides choosing nutrient-rich food, we also want to cut down on the amount of sugar and salt we consume.
Here's where the two symbol variants come in handy: "Lower in Sugar" and "Lower in Sodium".
How to Cut Down on Sugar
Choose products with the “Lower in Sugar” Healthier Choice Symbol.
Products with the "Lower in Sugar" symbol carry at least 25 per cent less sugar compared to drinks and products in the same food category without the symbol. You can compare their sugar levels on the food labels and ingredients list.
The next time you roam the drinks aisle, keep your eyes peeled for the "Lower in Sugar" Healthier Choice Symbol.
You can find the symbol on certain tea drinks (Chrysanthemum tea), sugary drinks, carbonated drinks, cultured milk products and fruit juice.
Choose these low-sugar drinks instead of sugar-loaded beverages. Added sugars in food and drinks provide empty calories with little nutritional value.
Too much sugar could lead to excess energy intake, weight gain and obesity, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure.
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How to Reduce Salt Intake
Besides cutting down on sugar, we also want to avoid eating too much sodium or salt.
The "Lower in Sodium" Healthier Choice Symbol indicates that the food product contains at least 25 per cent less sodium than similar products without the symbol. Reducing your sodium intake is so much easier now – simply choose products with this symbol.
Why consume less sodium? Eating too much sodium can increase blood pressure, which is a risk factor for stroke and kidney disease.
You do not have to cut out all salt intake. For better health, stick to a limit of 2,000mg of sodium per day.
Low sodium doesn't mean your food will taste bland. You'll find the "Lower in Sodium" symbol on flavourful sauces (such as chilli or tomato sauce), mixes and pastes, as well as crunchy nuts and seeds. Other items include canned and processed meats and processed seafood-based products.
So, the next time you're hankering for a savoury treat or you have sugar cravings, go for healthier choice options.
Download the HealthHub app on Google Play or Apple Store to access more health and wellness advice at your fingertips.
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