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Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

blog.alexwendland.com

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Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#51

Post by unwind »

_0ffh wrote: post #45
unwind wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just as a counterpoint, in Europe the requirement is to specify nutrition data per 100 g of "usable" product. Some products are e.g. intended to be added to water before consumption, then the nutrition is for that final form, not for the concentrate that you actually buy. But it's really practical, it makes it dead easy to e.g. compare calories, sugar, fat and so on between e.g. milk and apple sauce (to take random e…

No, "usable" product cannot be quite the correct expression. The macros per 100g of dry pasta are for the dry, not the cooked product. I'd venture to guess that few people eat their pasta dry.

That's true, didn't think of pasta ...

Not sure how to express it then, but on the other hand beverages sold as concentrate and mixed with water before drinking ("cordials" in English, I think) seem less common elsewhere so perhaps it's a local/Swedish thing and not a very good thing to focus on at all. :)

[1]: Like https://orklafoodsrs.se/produkt/454051626, scroll down and the nutritional info ("Näringsvärde") is right there and it's clearly the diluted drinkable version, not the concentrate.

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#53

Post by theGeatZhopa »

jajko wrote: post #30
teo_zero wrote: post #10

Is buffalo mozzarella the cheese they eat in spaghetti westerns? :D

According to many (including all Italians I know), its superior in taste to regular one from cow milk. I have to agree, fresh ones are mighty

I can confirm. It's more than superior. It's a different product.

If you mix a soup spoon of balsamico vinegar, a half of cup of boiling hot water, 2 spoons of olive oil and put in 1 bay leaf, half a handful of juniper berries, black and red pepper, salt and a little bit of grinded nutmeg, and of course, put the búfala mozzarella. And let it rest cooled for a few days in the refrigerator, you'll be in paradise!

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#54

Post by trollied »

Getting my lactose intolerance diagnosis changed my life. I was having all sorts of bad pains & issues. At one point I thought I had kidney problems because of the pains in the area. I stopped drinking alcohol. The GP did so many tests - I was fit and healthy. Then he suggested an elimination diet. I was sceptical, but after 2 weeks I felt like I had been reborn.

Many of the ills I had had over the years had been misdiagnosed (antibiotics for a bladder infection, for example - turns out it was just bloating and internal pressure from my bowel).

It's so nice being able to sleep properly at night, and also not have random diarrhea/bloating/pains. My mental health is also great - the link between gut health & depression etc needs much more research.

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#55

Post by aulin »

tikkosam wrote: post #49
aulin wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That doesn't say anything. It just says it may be more convenient to express data per 100 ml if you have a liquid product. Can you cite the article where it says you can express nutritional data with respect to a final form of the product you mix yourself and not list the per 100g/100ml data? I'm still very skeptic but would be quite interesting if that was really allowed.

Anecdotally, I am used to seeing the prepared nutrition values for certain food types here in Norway (which is aligned with EU regulation through EEA). It is quite common, and not always acompanied by values for raw unprepared product. Ive found mentions of it here: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A... From Article 31: "Where appropriate, the information may relate to the food after prepara…

Thank you! it is indeed true and allowed then.

I'm quite surprised as it adds ambiguity and complexity and leaves a backdoor open for playing with serving sizes and dilutions. I mean they could list the instructions for a diluted final product that makes the values look good but the actual preparation everyone does is way more concentrated.

Fortunately it doesn't seem that exploited if not for very specific products.

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#56

Post by theGeatZhopa »

gibagger wrote: post #47
dudefeliciano wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I basically take lactase enzyme pills everytime I have a dairy product. Sorry I'm not familiar with lactase enzyme or lactose intolerance, but wouldn't this be the reccomended usage? Or is it suggested to take the pills only when eating something with especially high lactose content?

AFAIK, lactose intolerance is a spectrum. I come from a country with spotty lactose tolerance so I've known multiple intolerant people. Just to give you an example: I am mildly intolerant. I can have a small glass of whole milk with some discomfort, namely gas and bloated stomach. People who are highly intolerant would have a really, really bad time with the same amount with cramps, diarrhea and whatnot.

Me too. I can drink half a glas of whole milk, eat all the cheese except for tête de moine, and eat half a block of butter, without a problem.

If it comes to a situation where it's impossible to avoid consumption of high in lactose products, I drink the lactose-free milk and do not take the enzymes (lactase). The milk already contains a lot of lactase. The enzyme tablets do not work with me somehow :)

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#57

Post by aulin »

esperent wrote: post #36
aulin wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That doesn't say anything. It just says it may be more convenient to express data per 100 ml if you have a liquid product. Can you cite the article where it says you can express nutritional data with respect to a final form of the product you mix yourself and not list the per 100g/100ml data? I'm still very skeptic but would be quite interesting if that was really allowed.

Apologies, I misread your previous comment. You're correct that the requirement is for 100g/100ml "as sold" not "as prepared". The other commenter is incorrect. So milk powder, for example, would have a mandatory nutrition label showing 100g of powder and then the company can optionally add a second label showing nutrition for a serving of prepared liquid milk. Since most companies add whatever serving makes it look…

Apologies from me, see tikkosam comment, it seems true indeed. There is an exception that allows this practice in article 31. My trust in EU regulations took a tiny hit today.

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#58

Post by theGeatZhopa »

kennydude wrote: post #33
relyks wrote: post #9

As someone who is also severely lactose intolerant, this is something you figure out through trial and error (or I should really say trial and extreme digestive system upset). Unless the food product is clear with mentioning "no lactose", you can only trust that product will contain a "minimum upper bounds of 500 milligrams of lactose per serving for products labeled “0g sugar”" and it could have that much as the aut…

Sadly is the case for me as well. A friend of mine went vegan just for the sake of at least it eliminated any possibility of diary products in their food. At least in the UK the enzyme pills can add up quite quickly in cost.

Buy lacto-free milk and drink that instead of the pills. In my experience, it's much better than the pills and works faster and better - enzymes added to whole milk are the same as in the pills.

I, for me, wouldn't go vegan, as then supplements are needed and that add really up in costs :(

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#59

Post by theGeatZhopa »

scotty79 wrote: post #42
relyks wrote: post #9

As someone who is also severely lactose intolerant, this is something you figure out through trial and error (or I should really say trial and extreme digestive system upset). Unless the food product is clear with mentioning "no lactose", you can only trust that product will contain a "minimum upper bounds of 500 milligrams of lactose per serving for products labeled “0g sugar”" and it could have that much as the aut…

Do lactase pills cause sugar spiking in diabetics? I think I've seen something like that in my lactose intolerant diabetic (tyle 2) family memeber.

May be not directly the lactase, but the split' lactose. Lactose is split into (milk) sugar by lactase enzyme. Lacto-free milk is sweeter than whole milk. So, it's the same problem with as with all sugars.

Re: Can a product with "0g sugar" contain lactose?

#60

Post by eridan2 »

scotty79 wrote: post #42
relyks wrote: post #9

As someone who is also severely lactose intolerant, this is something you figure out through trial and error (or I should really say trial and extreme digestive system upset). Unless the food product is clear with mentioning "no lactose", you can only trust that product will contain a "minimum upper bounds of 500 milligrams of lactose per serving for products labeled “0g sugar”" and it could have that much as the aut…

Do lactase pills cause sugar spiking in diabetics? I think I've seen something like that in my lactose intolerant diabetic (tyle 2) family memeber.

the lactose is converted in glucose, so probably yes, but it depends on the original quantity of lactose
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