Differences between UK and US food labels - FIBRE!!

[RainbowCookie]

Food labels in the US show fibre included in the carb total of a product, so to get the net carbs you minus this figure from the total carb figure.

In the UK labelling shows fibre totally different, the total carb figure is already the net carb figure (sugars and starches both count) and we should NOT be minusing off the fibre.

I was horrified to find this out, as I had been taking fibre off things.
From researching further on the net though it does seem to be right.

I guess with Atkins himself and the books being american, we have all just been following what it said there.. eek.

xx

 

[RainbowCookie]

Aha.. just spotted that this was also mentioned on here the other day.. im a bit behind.. sorry!! xx

 

[RainbowCookie]

Nudge this one up.. how about this for sticky?

 

[Rela]

I didn't make this mistake, at all, expecially not with some dark chocolate.............ahem.

 

[tan1]

How about products bought in other eu countries? Also i'm veggie and alot of the burgers and things are made in israel, does anyone know if the fibre needs deducting? thank you xx

 

[RainbowCookie]

A lot of the atkins branded products are produced in holland and they seem to follow the same format as UK ones. No idea about isreal, if there is a product you are particually worried about post the details and we will try and figure it out. xx

 

[1978Emma]

I found this on the internet, really helps to explain things! I was so confused before reading this. Emma

When starting out on the low carb way of life there is a lot of confusion about carbohyrdrate levels and how to measure them. I hope that the following information will help clarify the issues for those living in the UK.

Carbohydrates in Labelled Food

Food regulations in the UK mean that all manufactured foods are labelled with their contents, calories and the breakdown of these into protein, carbohydrate, and fat, usually per 100g.

Some labels give the amount of carbohydrate that comes from sugar whilst others break the fat down into saturated, mono-saturated and polysaturated. Labels may also contain a value for fibre and sodium.

A typical label looks like this:
Nutrition Information
Typical Values per 100g
Energy - kcal
Protein -
Carbohydrate -
.......of which sugars
Fat -
.......... of which saturates
.................monosaturates
.................polyunsaturates
Fibre -
Sodium -

The amount of carbohydrate given on the label is the effective carbohydrate content (ECC) of the food per 100g. The fibre value on the label is not connected to the carbohydrate value and therefore, unlike in the US, should not be deducted from the carbohydrate value.What you see on the label for carbohydrate is what you get.

Carbohydrates in Fresh Produce

Many fresh vegetables and fruit are not labelled and so information on their carbohydrate content is not readily available. I have found that the best source of this information is the supermarket online shopping websites. You do need to register, but you can find the information without having to order food. Links are given for:
Sainsbury's
Tesco

Again, the carbohydrate value given is the ECC, so do not deduct the fibre value.