Eat safe: 5 ways to read those food labels right

Choosing high-quality, healthy and budget-friendly foods can be a challenge for most people. However, as a consumer, you need to be interested in the nutritional composition of your meals and understand food labels. Here’s what the experts at FreshToHome recommend you look out for when doing your grocery shopping.

1. 100% clean label

The clean-label concept can vary from product to company to country. However, all you need to do is pick products that are made with a small number of ingredients that are easy to recognise and as wholesome as possible, sans any artificial or synthetic ingredients. This information is usually printed on product labels and also available on the app/website of an e-grocery.

2. Preservatives

Many brands use artificial preservatives to keep food fresh for longer periods of time. The excessive consumption of preservatives can cause obesity, damage heart tissues and trigger breathing problems.

It can also cause problems such as hyperactive behaviour in young children. Therefore, it is best if you avoid processed foods and focus on buying fresh food.

3. Chemicals or chemical emulsifiers

Chemically contaminated food can cause acute poisoning or even long-term diseases such as cancer. Chemical emulsifiers in your food have the potential to damage the intestinal barrier in your body, leading to inflammation and an increased risk of chronic diseases. They may cause food-borne diseases that lead to long-lasting disability or even death. When buying fish, look out for chemicals such as ammonia and formalin, which can be toxic for you.

4. Antibiotic residue

Antibiotic residue is considered a public health hazard. When buying meat, poultry or seafood, check whether the products are free of antibiotic residue, as even low levels of antibiotic exposure can lead to disease and also render any antibiotic treatment you receive largely ineffective.

5. Additives

Additives are substances added to foods to maintain or improve their taste, texture, appearance and increase shelf life. However, they have no place in our food due to their harmful effects on health. You should therefore choose products that are made with natural ingredients.

FreshToHome: A safer and healthier choice for you and your family

FreshToHome.com, a leading e-grocery in the UAE that delivers over 3,000 products to more than 100,000 happy customers, is the first choice for health-conscious consumers, especially mums, who want to ensure that their little ones always munch on clean and nutritious food.

Customers trust FreshToHome because the e-grocery gets its supply of fruits, veggies, poultry, meat and seafood directly from local farmers and fishermen. Its Ready-to-Cook range is prepared by expert chefs, using fresh ingredients while ensuring a strong emphasis on hygiene.

In addition, all FreshToHome products are 100 per cent clean label and certified by leading labs in the UAE to be free of all preservatives, antibiotic residue, chemicals and additives. The lab test results are regularly updated on FreshToHome’s website — ae.freshtohome.com/certificates — so that consumers like you can confidently log on to do your grocery shopping, and create healthier lifestyles for yourself and your loved ones.