What you don’t know CAN hurt you

Today everyone knows they need to keep an eye out for calories, sugar and fat content when they’re doing their weekly supermarket shop. But how many of us know what those other barely readable ingredients are? The ones that are comprised of a seemingly random combination of letters and numbers.

Unless you have a chemistry degree, the chances are you just ignore them and fall into the “what I don’t understand cannot harm me” trap.

Indeed many of us feel that so long as a food is not packed with sugar, carbs or fat, it’s ok. But unfortunately this is not the case. After all just because a food isn’t making you gain weight it doesn’t mean it’s not harming you in another way.

For example, butylated hydroxyanisole or BHA, is commonly found in cereals, potato chips and salad dressings to prevent them from spoiling. Sounds harmless, until you learn that some health authorities consider BHA a possible human carcinogen (linked with liver damage and cancer). That’s a lot of damage for three little letters.

Currently there are more than 300 additives approved for use in Australia and with numbers that large it’s almost impossible to know which ones to eat and which to avoid (because not all additives are nasty).

So you are basically left with two options. One, avoid eating. Or two, spend hours each day Googling food ingredients before each meal… both pretty much impossible.

But there is another option out there, InnerOrigin has recently launched in Australia and is committed to providing Australians with healthy food that actively promotes wellness and truth on labelling.

An Australian health and wellness marketplace, each product they sell is quality assured and free of the nasty additives that are commonplace in supermarket products.

They do this by sourcing their products from unique, local Australian suppliers who share their passion for transparency and healthy, sustainable living.

In short, they do all the research and product sourcing so you can live your life with the stress of worrying what you or your family is putting into their bodies.

At the end of the day, most people lead busy lives which makes it virtually impossible to exclusively eat fresh ingredients. However through some clever shopping practices (and some help from InnerOrigin), you can avoid those nasty additives and enjoy a healthy diet.

Sydney Unleashed is one of Australia’s premier entertainment publications exploring the latest in lifestyle trends. From Sydney’s finest restaurants, cafes and bars to the hottest in gadgets, products, and home entertainment, Sydney Unleashed is your one-stop lifestyle platform.