Why Is Sugar So Hard to Identify in Processed Foods?

Whole foods, like vege­tables and fruits, are a balanced package of micro- and macronutrients. The fiber in whole foods slows the absorption of their sugars, so generally speaking, whole foods on the sweeter end of the spectrum are not the problem.

Added sugars, on the other hand, most definitely are — in part because it’s not always easy to know where to find them, which makes it hard to know how much of them you’re eating.

Up to 75 percent of packaged foods contain sugars added during processing. For food manufacturers, these added sugars are a veritable Swiss Army knife. They create volume, retain moisture, extend shelf life, and enhance texture.

“Without added sugars, most processed foods would taste like cardboard,” says Schmidt.

The U.S. Food and Drug Admin­istration mandated in 2016 that ­nutrition-facts labels show added ­sugars. But because food makers now employ 262 names for sugar (here are 61 of those names), those added sugars are harder than ever to detect.

If a food manufacturer embeds a variety of sugars into foods as the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth ingredients, for example, sugar can easily add up to be the dominant ingredient without topping the list, Lustig says. Even savory foods like salsa, tomato sauce, and salad dressings often contain sugars (though often it’s to balance sour, salty, and spicy flavors).

Because food makers now employ 262 names for sugar, those added sugars are harder than ever to detect.

And then there are the beverages: Nearly half of the added sugars in the American diet are sipped, slurped, and gulped in the form of soft drinks, fruit drinks, sports drinks, and sweetened coffee and tea. (Here are seven “healthy” beverages — and how much sugar they actually contain.)

A meta-analysis published in 2023 looked at 85 studies on children and adults and found sugary beverages lead to weight gain. Researchers suspect it has to do with how the liver turns fructose into visceral fat. Soda sales are decreasing, but well over half of Americans still drink at least one a day.

“We, and especially our kids, are eating and drinking dessert all day long,” says Lustig.