The food industry is creative at hiding sugar. On ingredient lists you rarely find "sugar" – instead, there are over 50 different names. Here you'll learn to spot them all.
Contents
The Obvious Sugar Types
You probably already recognize these:
- Sugar, granulated sugar, caster sugar
- Cane sugar, raw cane sugar
- Brown sugar
- Powdered sugar, icing sugar
- Rock sugar, candy sugar
- Glucose (dextrose)
- Fructose (fruit sugar)
The "-ose" Endings
Anything ending in -ose is a type of sugar:
- Glucose – Grape sugar / dextrose
- Fructose – Fruit sugar
- Sucrose – Regular table sugar
- Lactose – Milk sugar
- Maltose – Malt sugar
- Dextrose – Another name for glucose
Syrups and Concentrates
These sound healthy but are usually pure sugar:
- Glucose syrup, glucose-fructose syrup
- Corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
- Maple syrup
- Agave syrup, agave nectar
- Rice syrup
- Date syrup
- Beet sugar syrup
- Invert sugar syrup
Malt Varieties
Malt is hidden sugar:
- Malt, malt extract
- Barley malt, barley malt extract
- Maltodextrin
- Malt syrup
"Natural" Sweeteners
These are often marketed as healthy, but they are still sugar:
- Honey
- Coconut sugar
- Whole cane sugar, panela
- Muscovado
- Molasses
- Apple juice concentrate
- Grape must, grape sweetener
Important: Your body processes these the same way as regular sugar. "Natural" does not mean sugar-free.
Where Does Sugar Hide?
These products often contain surprisingly high amounts of sugar:
- Ready-made sauces – Ketchup, BBQ sauce, salad dressing
- Bread – Yes, even bread often contains sugar
- Deli meats – Added for flavor
- Frozen pizza – In the dough and in the sauce
- Flavored yogurt – Sometimes more sugar than cola
- Cereal and granola – Often over 20% sugar
- Smoothies – "Healthy" sugar bombs
- Ready-made soups – Added for flavor
Conclusion
Once you know these names, you can instantly spot hidden sugar on ingredient lists. Rule of thumb: the higher up sugar (in any form) appears on the list, the more there is. And if multiple types of sugar are listed, they add up!
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Start now with the 21-day challenge.
