Faced with the proliferation of references on the shelves, reading the nutritional table constitutes an essential weapon for preserving your cardiovascular health. However, the packaging is full of traps and sometimes misleading marketing promises. To balance your lipid profile without spending hours on it, you should adopt good reflexes while shopping. Update with dietician Vanessa Bedjaï-Haddad.
Look at saturated fatty acids rather than total lipids
Contrary to popular belief, the first line to examine is not necessarily that of total fat, but the one located just below: “including saturated fatty acids”.
“Consumed in excess, these contribute to increasing LDL-cholesterol, the “bad” cholesterol. We therefore compare two products of the same category on the basis of 100 g or 100 ml, choosing the one which contains the least” first explains the dietitian.
Carefully decipher the list of ingredients
The nutritional table is not everything: the list of ingredients provides essential information on the quality of the fats used by the manufacturer. The ingredients are classified in descending order of importance (from the most present to the least present), vigilance is required.
“We notice in particular butter, cream, palm oil, coconut oil and partially hydrogenated fats when they appear among the first ingredients” adds the dietitian.
Pay attention to fiber and hidden sugars
Lipid balance also depends on other nutrients that should be monitored:
- Fibers. Indispensable in everyday life, they constitute true allies. The more a cereal product contains, the more interesting it turns out to be. Certain fibers, notably those from oats and legumes, actively participate in reducing LDL cholesterol;
- Sugars. Their vigilance is particularly necessary in cases of high triglycerides, overweight or associated diabetes.
Take into account the portion actually consumed
Beware of scale pitfalls: the nutritional values listed on the packaging are systematically given for 100 g or 100 ml of product. However, the quantity actually ingested on the plate can vary considerably from this standard measurement. An individual portion can be significantly smaller… or conversely much larger.
You understand: you should not blindly trust flattering marketing claims such as “cholesterol-free”, “vegetable” or “low-fat”. “A product can perfectly display the absence of dietary cholesterol while being full of saturated fatty acids that are harmful to the body. Conversely, a food dense in total fat, such as olive oil or nuts, is excellent for cardiovascular health thanks to its richness in unsaturated fatty acids.“concludes the dietitian.