Is 'Less Fat' Potato Chips a Healthier Choice?
Potato chips with 'less fat' may not necessarily be healthy!
To determine whether a food product is a healthier choice, we first need to determine whether it is high in fat, sugar and sodium (salt). Please refer to the following advice from the Centre for Food Safety:
.jpg "'Shopping Card' – Centre for Food Safety")
'Shopping Card' – Centre for Food Safety
Take the example of ABC brand potato chips (see table below), although the 'less fat' version ( 23.9g of fat per 100g) is 25% less in fat than its 'regular' version, both versions are actually high in total fat. Moreover, the sodium (salt) contents are the same in both versions (607mg of sodium per 100g), and are classified as high salt foods.
Comparison of nutritional contents of the 'less fat' and 'regular' versions of ABC brand potato chips:
| Nutrition content |
ABC chips with 'Less Fat' | 'Regular' ABC chips |
|---|---|---|
| Per 100g | Per 100g | |
| Energy | 339 kcal1 | 536 kcal1 |
| Total Fat2 | 23.9g | 32.1g |
| Sodium | 607mg | 607mg |
2 4.5g Fat is equivalent to around 1 teaspoon of oil
Therefore, do not rely solely on Nutritional Claims when choosing your food product. Read the nutritional labels carefully and don't be misled by claims on the packages.
To know more about…
- healthy eating, please visit 'Health Zone' at http://www.cheu.gov.hk
- information on nutritional labels, please visit the Centre for Food Safety website http://www.nutritionlabel.gov.hk/
- 'Health@work.hk Project', please visit http://www.healthatwork.gov.hk
Top
