Hidden sugar

Hidden sugar is sugar in foods where you wouldn't expect it – and it makes up a large part of our daily sugar intake. Ketchup contains around 20 to 25 grams of sugar per 100 grams, fruit yoghurt 12 to 14, crunchy granola often 20 or more, cornflakes around 8, ready-made salad dressing 10 to 15 and jarred red cabbage over 10; even cold meats and bread often get a little sugar.

How to find it: on the nutrition label, under carbohydrates, there's the line “of which sugars” – per 100 grams. As a rough guide, up to 5 grams counts as low, 22.5 grams or more as high. The ingredients list is sorted by quantity: if sugar is among the first three ingredients, there's a lot of it. And sugar has many names: glucose syrup, fructose-glucose syrup, dextrose, maltodextrin, invert sugar, barley malt, rice syrup, agave syrup, fruit sweetener, coconut blossom sugar – more than 70 names are in circulation.

Why do manufacturers put sugar in cold meats or bread? It improves flavour, colour, texture and shelf life – and makes products taste “rounder”. Reduced-fat light products are especially likely to get extra sugar to compensate.

The simplest countermeasures for families: plain yoghurt with fresh fruit instead of fruit yoghurt, oats instead of crunchy granola, tomato purée and spices instead of ready-made sauce, ketchup as a dab rather than a lake, and homemade dressing. That quickly cuts out 20 to 30 grams of sugar a day – without giving up enjoyment.

Children find it exciting to use sugar cubes to show how much is in their favourite product. It's not a ban but an eye-opener – and often the start of a new habit.