How To Find Hidden Sugars

Sugar is everywhere! It’s hidden in all sorts of foods–many you wouldn’t even think of like barbecue sauce, salad dressings, or even your favorite pasta sauce.

How do we avoid some of these hidden sugars?

Start reading labels! Take the challenge to read the ingredients list on the labels of some of your common foods to increase your awareness of what has sugar in it. 

Pro tip from your Certified Nutrition Coach at Fitaholic Fitness:

Always scan the ingredient list—not just the sugar grams on the nutrition label. Sugar can be broken up into smaller amounts under different names, making it seem like there’s less than there really is.

What are you looking for? 

Here are the most common names for sugar used on food labels. Manufacturers often use multiple forms in one product to make it look like sugar isn’t one of the first ingredients:

Anything ending in “-ose”:

• Glucose
• Fructose
• Sucrose
• Dextrose
• Maltose
• Lactose
• High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

Syrups:

• Corn syrup
• Brown rice syrup
• Malt syrup
• Maple syrup
• Cane syrup
• Agave syrup/nectar
• Golden syrup
• Sorghum syrup 

Crystals, juices, or solids:

• Cane sugar
• Coconut sugar
• Beet sugar
• Raw sugar
• Fruit juice concentrate
• Evaporated cane juice
• Turbinado sugar
• Date sugar 

Other tricky names:

• Honey
• Molasses
• Barley malt
• Caramel
• Maltodextrin
• Ethyl maltol

Want help reading food labels or cutting back on sneaky sugars?

Book your FREE 15-minute nutrition consult with our certified nutrition coach and take the guesswork out of eating better! Because less is more when it comes to sugar!