Are you sure you can understand the labels of the products you buy?

We made an inquiry and most of the people we interviewed at school or in our families couldn’t answer our questions, for example “what is tragacanth?” What about you? Do you know what it is? If your answer is “No, I don’t”, read on.

Labels are organized in one way: from the ingredient in the highest percentage to the one in the lowest percentage.  But the ingredients that are at the bottom of the list are often unknown, mysterious or even bad for your health.

Let’s talk about flavourings:  they are often not natural  but artificial and synthetic. They reproduce the flavour or the smell of something that isn’t there.

Or have you ever asked yourself what acronyms or abbreviations like E133 mean? It’s a  synthetic colouring agent. People are used to them and they don’t even notice their presence, but they are harmful for our body.

To save money people often look at prices without checking the quality of the ingredients or they trust the famous brands. Famous brands often launch a product with glamorous, attractive campaigns and consumers blindly believe in advertising.

In conclusion, this is our advice to readers: from now on, try to read the labels with a critical eye, be careful and try to unveil the mystery behind the labels. Don’t let them become an unknown world …

By the way: the tragacanth is an emulsifying and thickening agent used in the preparation of candies, sauces and ice-creams. It isn’t harmful, but it can have a laxative effect …

By Rebecca (2^ G), Simone (2^ D), Lorenzo (2^A), Greta (2^ C) and Andrea (2^ C), IC Settimo milanese, Milano, Italy

Ph. credit http://www.publicdomainpictures.net