Brits underestimate calorie content of 'healthy' snacks
Many Brits underestimate the calorie-content of healthy snacks such as dips and reduced-fat goods, according to new research.The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) has published the results of a survey which shows that two[-]thirds of Britons underestimate the number of calories in hummus, a chickpea-based dip which contains on average 332 calories per 100g.
Furthermore, just 29 per cent of respondents were aware that reduced-fat mayonnaise was high in calories.
Conversely, a fifth of consumers mistakenly thought that bananas were high in calories when they only contain an average of 95 calories per 100g.
Maya Monteiro, senior education manager at the WCRF, expressed her concern at the results of the survey, as so many diseases are associated with being overweight.
She said: "This troubling lack of understanding is perhaps not helped by labels such as 'light' and 'reduced fat' when these are applied to foods which still have a high calorie content.
"At this time of year many people make New Year's resolutions to lose weight but to do this it is important that they understand how to determine whether a food is high in calories."
