We continue to browse and explore the “healthy” shelves in supermarkets. After the “gluten-free” labels, we turn our attention to the “sugar-free” labels. Unfortunately, this side is just as disastrous as the gluten-free ones.

Sugar-Free Jam
I bought the jam you see above from the “sugar-free” shelf. First of all, it says “Contains sweetener,” and as soon as you see this, you should approach the subject with suspicion, asking, “What is this sweetener?” The first ingredient in the ingredients list is a thickener. There’s an important point when reading the ingredients: whatever is most abundant in the product is listed first, and the others follow in order of quantity. The thickener is the most abundant ingredient in this jam. It’s followed by orange peel and water. Then there’s another thickener, and an acidity regulator, sweetener, in parentheses, “steviol glycoside.” What is this sweetener? A chemical. That’s all the ingredients consist of.

We’re calmly putting this product back in its place 🙂 Just because it says “sugar-free” doesn’t mean it’s a healthy food. Gluten-free, sugar-free, lactose-free, vegan… Especially abroad, it goes paleo, ketogenic, etc. These are just for information. All these labels don’t mean those products are healthy. Some have clean ingredients, but most are full of chemicals and processed products.

If you absolutely want orange jam, you can buy oranges, tangerines, whichever you prefer, chop them up. Add some mulberries, some apricots. You can add cinnamon, cloves. You cook it by reducing it with a little water, and voilà, your marmalade or jam is ready. This is the most natural way to make it; when you look at the products, you can see that they all come from nature. Does it have a tree, a root? That’s our question. Does steviol glycoside have a tree, a root? No 🙂

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a sugar alternative. Sugar is sugar, or if it isn’t, most of it is a lab-grown, processed product. You can find extensive and detailed information on this topic by reading my articles, “Sugar Alternatives” and “Sugar Alternatives Part 2.” Our only friend is fruit 🙂

Also, we absolutely must make reading labels a habit.

Wishing you the best in choosing good and clean products 🙂

Best regards,

Sema