Give yourself a 'Fooducation'

You just left the gym and your husband called saying you need to grab a loaf of bread for dinner. Exhausted, you pull into your local target store that is the closet store on the way home. As you stand in the bread aisle that has been picked over in advance of the impending snowstorm, the last thing you want to do is start comparing label to label – you just want to grab and go.

This is a true story (of mine) that has happened on numerous occasions. We all know that no two food items are created equal so how can you be sure to make the right choice every time, even when you’re exhausted.

That’s where Fooducate comes in!

Fooducate is an amazing app / website that helps take the guess work out of healthy choices. Through my weight loss journey, impulse and rushed food purchases tend to be the number one ways for someone to easily screw up and entire days progress. With Fooducate that will never happen again!

Fooducate uses a grading scale (just like in school) to provide an A through D rating for your food. According to their website, their scientific formula is based on algorithms of each product. In addition to a grade, Fooducate will provide important information about the product such as whether it’s high in sugar, high in nutrients, a good source of calcium, highly processed or whether it’s in danger for having GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms).

What makes Fooducate truly unique is the grade scale isn’t based solely on the nutrition facts of calories and carbs, but based on the actual ingredients of the product – which is a more accurate depiction of a healthy choice.

Let’s compare two popular cereals – clearly you’ll know which ones better, but just to prove a point.

Cheerios

Grade: A-

Calories per Serving:       100

Ingredients List: Whole Grain Oats, Modified Corn Starch, Sugar, Salt, Tripotassium Phosphate, Oat Fiber, Wheat Starch, Vitamin E (Mixed Tocopherols) Added to Preserve Freshness, Calcium Carbonate, Iron and Zinc (Mineral Nutrients), Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbate), a B Vitamin (Niacinamide), Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin Mononitrate), Vitamin A (Palmitate), a B Vitamin (Folic Acid), Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3.

Other Notes:

• There is a high GMO Probability
• Less than 1.5 tsp of sugar. Nice
• This product is in the top 10% of the products in its category

Fruity Pebbles

Grade: D +

Calories per serving: 100

Ingredient list: rice, sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil (coconut and palm kernel oils), salt, contains less than 0.5% of natural and artificial flavor, red 40, yellow 6, turmeric oleoresin (color), blue 1, yellow 5, blue 2 bha (to help protect flavor). vitamins and minerals: sodium ascorbate (source of vitamin c), ascorbic acid (vitamin c), niacinamide, reduced iron, zinc oxide (vitamin c), niacinamide, reduced iron, zinc oxide (source of zinc), vitamin b6, vitamin a palmitate, riboflavin (vitamin b2), thiamin mononitrate (vitamin b1), folic acid, vitamin b12, vitamin d.

Other Notes and Concerns:

• Artificial Colors
• Medium GMO probability
• 2.5 tsp of sugar per serving
• Low fiber.

Clearly, most people would be able to tell you that the Cheerios are better than fruity pebbles, but what if I asked you what was better – Cheerios or Fiber Plus Berry Yogurt Crunch? Would you make the right choice?

Fiber Plus should be healthy right? It makes health claims on the box. Let’s see what Fooducate had to say…

Fiber Plus Berry Yogurt Crunch

Grade: C-

Calories per Serving: 170

Ingredients” Whole grain wheat, sugar, rice, chicory root fiber, modified wheat starch, soluble corn fiber, whole grain oats, contains 2% or less of malt flavoring, salt, oat fiber, corn bran, corn syrup, wheat starch, degerminated yellow corn flour, honey, palm kernel oil, modified corn starch, nonfat milk, glycerin, apple puree, fruit juice concentrate (kiwi, strawberry, red raspberry, blueberry), canola oil, natural and artificial flavor, fructooligosaccharides, corn cereal, strawberries, blueberries, whey, monoglycerides, soy lecithin, corn starch, nonfat yogurt powder (heat treated after culturing), soybean oil, invert sugar, cinnamon, guar gum, caramel color, citric acid, BHT for freshness, beta carotene for color, red 40, blue 2, cellulose gum, green 3, blue 1, red 40 lake, blue 2 lake, Vitamins and Minerals: Vitamin A palmitate, vitamin C (ascorbic acid), niacinamide, vitamin D, vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate), vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B1 (thiamin hydrochloride), folic acid, vitamin B12.

Notes

• High GMO Probability
• 3 tsp of sugar per serving (if you’re keeping track that’s MORE than the fruity pebbles)
• Controversial additive BHT present
• Artificial colors

Now, how many people standing in the aisle of the store would think that eating Fiber Plus is actually the same if not worse than eating Fruity Pebbles.

In addition to all the above mentioned features, what’s really great about Fooducate is the customization of the app and website. You can input food preferences and more to make sure you’re getting 100% accurate and useful data. You can also keep a history of all the items you search / scan to be sure you’re always making the best choice.

So back to the original story – in less than 5 minutes I scanned six loaves of bread and knew which was the best because Fooducate took the guess work out of the trip – which was especially nice when I’m completely exhausted.

Fooducate is available for iphone and android 100% free! Grab it today and start scanning!