Hidden sugars in foods type 2 diabetes risk
A TOOWOOMBA pharmacist says people could be putting themselves at risk of developing diabetes without even knowing it.
Diabetes is the fastest growing condition in Australia with 280 Australians developing the condition every day.
Australians are putting themselves at risk of type 2 diabetes by consuming high sugar foods showing a low sugar content.
Good Price Pharmacy Warehouse Toowoomba pharmacist Dannii Martin said companies were commonly disguising the sugar content in their food by using a different name for sugar when listing ingredients on labels.
“Using names such as glucose, fructose and sucrose as ingredients are often harder for consumers to identify as sugars,” she said.
“The hidden sugars in foods are putting consumers at a higher risk of type 2 diabetes without them even being aware of their high sugar intake.
“By dividing the total amount of sugar into different ingredients, it makes the sugar percentage level lower and therefore appear lower on the list of ingredients.”
Consumers are often unaware that some foods that may be viewed as healthy are in fact quite high in sugar.
Good Price Pharmacy Warehouse naturopath Brooke Pagel said people were often surprised when they found out some “healthy” foods contained high sugar levels.
“Foods such as multi-grain and brown bread, tinned baked beans, reduced fat yoghurt and smoothies are actually quite high in sugar despite their health benefits,” she said.
The warning comes ahead of National Diabetes Week which runs from July 9-15.
❝sugars The hidden in foods are putting consumers at a higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
— Dannii Martin