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If something has the word “vegetable” in its name, it’s a healthy option, right? Wrong! A lot of seemingly harmless vegetable-labeled dishes are packed with sugar and calories. Next time you’re reaching for a healthy snack, be sure to check the label and avoid these six secret saboteurs.
1. Ketchup:
Even though ketchup is seemingly harmless, it’s packed with high fructose corn syrup and sugar. Next time you’re looking for something to dip into, opt for salsa, spices, or nothing.
2. Corn:
Corn actually isn’t a vegetable. It’s a grain. While corn does have its fair share of B and C vitamins, it’s also loaded with sugar. An average-sized ear can have up to 15 grams of sugar. As with most grains, corn is best enjoyed in moderation.
3. Vegetable Juice:
When trying to reach the five-a-day fruit and veggie requirements, it’s easy to reach for a can of veggie juice. When fruits and veggies are juiced, the majority of their nutrients and fiber are compromised. Veggie juice boasts a whopping two servings of veggies per serving, however, those veggies are smothered with sugar-enhanced fruit juices. As delicious and tempting as store-bought juice might be, check the label before ingesting.
4. Veggie Chips:
If you’re addicted to the crunch of potato chips but avoid ’em because of the grease and carbs, veggie chips would seem like a logical options. Unsurprisingly, most veggie chips are deep-fried and primarily made with corn and potatoes. Those rich red and green hues come from food coloring, not bell peppers and zucchini.
5. Canned Vegetable Soup:
Canned veggie soup seems like a healthy, low-cal meal option, right? Not always. They’re often laden with excessive amounts of sugar and sodium. While soup is a great option, stick to the homemade variety.
6. Vegetable Tempura:
While it seems like common sense that any veggie that’s thrown in the deep fryer should not be included in any diet regimen, many people think tempura is ok because tempura is touted as a light batter. Wrong. Tempura is loaded with sugar, oil, and cornstarch, a sure-fire way to sabotage your diet.
Edited by Jody Smith
Add a Comment56 Comments
I agree with most everyone commenting. The writer seems to not have done a thorough job of researching facts about vegetables. Only an ignorance person would classify ketchup, vegetable juice, vegetable chips, soup, and last but not least - Vegetable Tempura as "vegetables". The writer seems to imply that anything that is made from vegetables must also then be a vegetable too. Would the writer of this article classify plastic made from soy a healthy alternative to the 6 food items mentioned in the article? According to the article, the six items mentioned were unhealthy based only on the fact that they contain sugar, sodium (salt), and calories. Since plastic does not contain sugar or salt, that would mean according to the writer it must be a nutritional food source!
Who was the publishing editor that o.k.'d this article to be published? That person should be fired! Just because the word "vegetable" was put in quotes in the title of the article, does not magically make the six items - vegetables. The article title should not have used the word "vegetables" in place of the defining words "processed foods." The correct title for this article should have been "Six Processed Foods That Should Not Be in Your Diet." (Like the word "ain't," the word "shouldn't" is not a proper word, therefore it was also another faux pa made by the writer.) I wonder if this article was not written by a junior high school age child or younger, then I could forgive the ignorant references made by the writer.
August 26, 2011 - 1:04amThis Comment
By the way, genius, it's faux pas, not faux pa. And there's nothing wrong with the word shouldn't, or wouldn't or couldn't for that matter.
October 4, 2011 - 12:36amThis Comment
WHY do people who don't know anything about proper grammar always have to demonstrate that fact?
Merriam-Webster disagrees that "shouldn't " isn't a proper word.
It dates to around 1675
"Ain't" is only about three quarters of a century younger.
September 28, 2011 - 1:12amThis Comment
"Shouldn't" is a proper word. It is called a "contraction" -- a shortening of the words "should" and "not".
September 20, 2011 - 1:58amThis Comment
The article title, misleading or not, may have been a reference to President Ronald Reagan's attempt to have ketchup classified as a vegetable. The title was certainly intended to grab attention, which it did.
September 18, 2011 - 2:01amThis Comment
Thanks for the article! Just wanted to add that although ketchup may have fructose, its benefits outweigh any cons for men. Processed tomatoes such as ketchup, tomato sauce, and tomato soup all have a substantial amount of lycopene prostate-protective agent.
Everything we consume should be taken in moderation. It's important to realize that we shouldn't indulge in certain food items that we think may be our healthiest options but it's okay to have a nice sweet corn or a handful of veggie chips every now and then.
-Rosa
August 25, 2011 - 7:56amThis Comment
Hey Rosa and OP - why not select Ketchup without HFCS and added sugar? Educating people how to enjoy their foods in moderation does not preclude informing them of their choices. Read the label, choose a healthier ketchup, and use it in moderation. Everyone is correct this time.
August 25, 2011 - 10:09pmThis Comment
Exaxtly. I buy no sugar added ketchup, free of added sugar and that hated high fructose corn syrup. I have a real hatred for HFCS, I think it is far more dangerous than sugar, and the way that the HFCS producers try to soft soap us with their idiotic, feel good commercials, the line, "whether it's cane sugar or corn sugar" is a blatant lie, HFCS is proudced in laboratories, it is completely synthetic, man made, never to be found in nature, and had NOTHING to do with the naturally occuring sugars in corn. Anything with HFCS stays out of my shopping cart.
September 16, 2011 - 1:09amThis Comment
My daughter is deathly allergic to corn and HFCS - it is in many more products than most suspect. HFCS is NOT sugar and anyone that thinks so is mislead
October 8, 2011 - 2:12amThis Comment
HFCS isn't "synthetic". It's mostly fructose, a substance that occurs naturally in fruits and other parts of plants. Enzymes (biological catalysts) are used to split corn starch molecules into shorter chains, which yields a high portion of fructose and other sugars. It's exactly the same thing that enzymes in your saliva do when you chew on a slice of bread. If HFCS is harmful, it's because there's TOO MUCH of it in soft drinks and processed foods. Things that require little or no sweetener are sweetened beyond belief in order to entice people to buy them and consume them.
September 20, 2011 - 1:55amThis Comment