How to easily spot hidden sugars in food products

Sugars are lurking everywhere. When you see ‘sugar’ on a food label, what comes to your mind? The sugar you use at home? Yes, that’s sugar. But that’s just one type of sugar.

Sugar is carbohydrate, but in simple form. Other types of sugar include:

• glucose
• fructose
• galactose
• maltose (two glucoses)
• sucrose (glucose + fructose)
• lactose (glucose and galactose)

The first three are simple sugars. It means they’re already in the simplest form and so your body can use them immediately without first breaking them down. The last three require just a little effort from your body to break them down.

Glucose-fructose 101

Glucose and fructose are very common. And your body prefers to get its energy from glucose. When you eat something containing glucose, your body uses it right away when it needs it. Or store it for later if not needed at that moment.

Fructose is the sugar found in fruits and honey. It’s sweeter than glucose and the body handles it differently, mainly in the liver.

What “added sugar” actually means

When you see or hear “added sugar”, it means any sugar that’s added during the processing or preparation of the food.

This includes everything from the sugar in your morning coffee to the sugar in soda, cookies, sauces and many more.

Added sugars don’t naturally occur in the food but are put into the food for a specific purpose. Usually, it’s for sweetness, but there are other reasons which you’ll come across soon.

Why too much sugar is not good

You already know consuming too much sugar (sucrose for the purpose of this section) isn’t good. So this section is just a refresher.

When you take a lot of sugar, it goes straight into your blood (remember the body doesn’t need much work to break it down?) This will cause a rapid increase in your energy levels at first, followed by a sharp drop.

It’s like lifting a weight and then dropping it suddenly. This sharp drop stresses your body. Over time, it can strain insulin response, leading to insulin resistance and potentially type 2 diabetes, and a host of other issues.

Excessive sugar is also addictive. The more sugar you consume it, the more you crave it. There’s a dopamine system driving this. It forms a cycle that’s very hard to break (food companies know this very well).

Besides the sugars already mentioned, there are many other types of “sugars” you might find on a food label. If you know these sugars, you can make better choices about the products you consume.

How do you spot hidden sugars in (ultra)processed food products?

The only place is on the food label, specifically, the ingredient list. In highly processed foods, you may find more than one type of hidden sugar. So always read the food label.

12 hidden sugars: names you see on food label that are also sugars

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup

It’s one major liquid “sugar” used in many processed and ultra-processed foods. It contains glucose and fructose, but the fructose quantity is higher. This means it’s sweeter than normal sugar.

You’ll find it in an incredible number and sometimes unexpected food products – breakfast cereals, dairy products, salad dressings, bread (industrial). It’s an unending list.

Other names: HFCS, Glucose-Fructose

Manufacturers use it because it's cheaper and sweeter than normal sugar. It also prevents food from becoming too dry.

2. Maltodextrin

It’s gotten from cornstarch. It’s white, powdery, has no taste and can easily dissolve in water. It can also be made from other starches like wheat, rice and tapioca.

Other names: corn syrup solids, modified corn starch

Manufacturers use it because it gives desired texture to some baked foods, it improves the flavor of some liquid foods, it prevents some baked goods from becoming hard and it also helps thicken ice cream and prevent crystals from forming.

Maltodextrin has no nutritional value, but it has a high glycemic index. This means it can raise blood sugar levels quickly if you take too much especially in a sitting.

One likely way to take too much is if you take too much of products containing it especially in short periods of time. And also continuously for a long time. Speak of getting stuck with a favorite bakery product or ice cream you can’t have enough of for so long.

3. Invert sugar

Invert sugar is a glucose-fructose mixture in a liquid form.

Other names: simple syrup, sugar water, sucrose inversion bar syrup

Manufacturers use it because it keeps keeps foods from hardening, keeps food from spoiling, dissolves very well especially in fizzy and soft drinks and gives better consistency to some liquid foods like ice cream.

4. Dextrose

It’s a simple sugar made from corn, rice or wheat. It’s chemically the same as glucose. It has a high glycemic index, so it can cause a quick rise in blood sugar.

Other names: Glucose, Corn Sugar

Sports food products usually use it for the quick energy boost. Manufacturers use it to give specific texture to food products and also to sweeten many products.

5. Lactose

Lactose is a natural sugar found in milk and dairy products. It’s not as sweet as the other types of sugars. And you need an enzyme called lactase to properly digest it.

Do you remember lactose intolerance? If you’re lactose intolerant, it means your body produces little or no lactase enzyme. So you can’t really digest lactose. This can cause bloating and other discomfort.

Other names: milk sugar

Manufacturers use it to add mild sweetness to dairy products. They use it as food to feed the bacteria that helps in fermentation of dairy products. They also use it for its nutritional value; it helps absorb calcium and other minerals in dairy products.

6. Fructose

This sugar is naturally found in fruits, honey, and some vegetables. It’s one of the sweetest naturally occurring sugars. That’s why a well-ripe banana or mango is so sweet.

Other names: fruit sugar, levulose

It’s very sweet so a little bit of it gives desired sweetness. That’s lots of cost savings for many manufactueres. It's used to improve the flavor in soft drinks, baked goods, and desserts due to its fruity taste. It also prevents drying of baked goods keeping them soft for a long time.

7. Sucrose

This is the everyone refers to as sugar. You use it in your tea, coffee, homemade bread and more It’s natural in many plants. But is usually extracted from sugarcane and sugar beets. It’s the standard for sweetness and used widely in both household and industry.

Sucrose = glucose + fructose bonded together.

These two are not necessarily bonded together in invert sugar, HFCS.

Other names: table sugar, cane sugar, beet sugar

Manufacturers use it because it's the standard for sweetness, it’s very versatile so it can be used in many foods and as preservative for products like jams, jellies.

8. Glucose syrup

It’s more like glucose but in the liquid form. And it’s made by breaking down starch (mostly from corn). Wheat, potato, or rice starches are also used.

Other names: corn syrup, glucose-fructose syrup (if fructose is added)

Manufacturers use it for its sweetness, to preserve products, stabilize texture and to give smooth texture particularly in candies and frostings.

Glucose syrup has a high glycemic index and it’s particularly concerning for people managing diabetes or trying to maintain steady energy levels.

9. Maltose

It’s made up of two glucose bonded together. It’s found naturally in germinating grains and mostly used in baked or brewed products.

Other names: malt sugar

Manufacturers use it to give mild sweetness and malty flavor to food products. It also facilitates fermentation during brewing and baking.

10. Molasses

It’s a thick, dark syrup that’s a byproduct of sugar refining. They use it mostly in sauces, baked foods and some health foods. It’s rich in vitamins and minerals, mainly iron, calcium, and magnesium.

Other names: black treacle, blackstrap molasses

Manufacturers use it to give a dark or brown color to products, reduce drying, add deep sweetness with slightly bitter undertone. Due to its nutritional value, you're likely to find it in health foods.

11. Treacle

It’s a thick sweet syrup from sugar refining. It’s similar to molasses. Treacle is sweeter, lighter in color and thinner in consistency than molasses.

Other names: golden syrup (light treacle), black treacle (dark treacle)

Manufacturers use it to add color, give sweetness and help maintain moisture in baked goods.

12. Turbinado sugar

It’s semi-refined sugar with a light brown large crystals. The brown color is from some of the molasses that remained during processing.

Other names: raw sugar, demerara sugar

Manufacturers use it for its mild caramel flavor and the crunchy texture it gives. It's also considered healthier and therefore could be found in health foods (mostly baked goods and beverages)

Manufacturers sometimes use a combo of these sugars

You read an ingredient list and can see up to 4 or or even more of these sugars in just one food product! Why is this so?

Different sugars have different characteristics. And manufacturers use each for the specific reason (some mentioned above).

For example, some sugars prevent the product from drying up, some make the product soft, others preserve the product, others too are cheap, etc. So manufacturers try different types of sugars and combinations until they get a combo that’s good for the product and for them (mostly financially).

Actually, the purpose is to make the product appeal to you (while also managing cost in most cases). There’s nothing wrong with this intention.

However, here’s the unintended consequence. Most consumers tend to over eat these foods arguably because they designed to hook the consumer and get them returning for more and more. Sometimes, more than necessary. And this cascades into a series of health issues.

How do these sugars impact your daily nutrition?

Food manufacturers MIGHT use these sugars in small amounts. So one biscuit or fizzy drink once a while isn’t necessarily harmful.

But if you take two biscuits and a bottle of fizzy drink once or twice a day, almost daily. If you put one biscuit and “fruit juice” in your child’s lunch box 5 days a week.

These daily intakes add up quickly in the mid to long term. Even in the short them, it can make you feel crappy and not-so-good. This causes high calorie intake, higher blood sugar levels, weight gain and the rest follow suit.

Check this LinkedIn post on how these sugars can add up quickly

[LinkedIn Post]

Here's what you can do

If any of these sugars is in the first 5 ingredients in a food product, then it’s likely high in the food. You could then decide how to consume it.

• Eat smaller portions
• Skip buying altogether
• Eat it once in a while
• Something else that works for you

MODERATION IS THE KEY.

In fact, it’s the whole door and way to better health through food.

Stay informed

The next time you see “sugar” on a food label, don’t just think of sucrose (table sugar). It can be any of these sugars, a combination or even something else that's not part of this list.

Some food manufacturers list a mix of sugars, like sucrose, invert sugar, and HFCS, simply as “sugar.” Others specify each sugar by name. So stay informed.