Polina Lopez grew up eating healthy and exercising. Her mother gave her oranges and nuts for sweet treats instead of cookies and ice cream. She’s always valued health, so she was surprised when her doctor told her she had pre-diabetes.
The Importance of Reading Nutrition Labels
Growing up in Russia, Lopez chose foods that seemed healthy. But once she moved to the United States, she realized added sugars were probably the main culprit in her pre-diabetes diagnosis.
It is not required in Russia to report the amount of sugars in nutrition labels. Russian companies only report the amount of total carbs in a food product. Many people choose foods that seem healthy with no way to know whether they’re packed with sugar.
Americans who don’t read nutrition labels, take heed: knowing what’s in your food can be the difference between thinking something is healthy, and knowing it’s healthy.
Something isn’t healthy just because it looks healthy. Here in America, high-fructose corn syrup hides in applesauce, beer, ketchup, beans, and other seemingly benign food products. Watching out for labels is the first line of defense against added sugars that can wreck your health.
Lopez Launches Sugar-Free RICHBars
Polina used her diagnosis as a force for good. She was shocked when she learned of her diagnosis and was even more dismayed when she dove into diabetes statistics. She wanted to show people that sweetness can be achieved without all those added sugars.
Enter RICHBars. Lopez launched this product line to offer a sweet treat alternative to the sugary desserts that contribute to metabolic disease and diabetes. These bars are made of unsweetened fruits, nuts, and spices.
On her website, Lopez says, “For years dessert has been known as something you have to give up for a healthy lifestyle. At RICHBars we disagree and we believe that it is a matter of choosing the right approach.”
Seems to us that Polina’s mother was right – some fruit and nuts served the right way can have the same tasy impact as a sugary, rich dessert fit for a heart attack, but without the health disadvantages. Eat the dessert without the guilt.
To explore Lopez’ product line, visit her website. She calls them “raw, vegan candy bars” and they come in many flavors, including ginger lemon, mango, matcha, and classic chocolate.
NUTRITIONAL DISCLAIMER
The content on this website should not be taken as medical advice and you should ALWAYS consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. We provide nutritional data for our recipes as a courtesy to our readers. We use Total Keto Diet app software to calculate the nutrition and we remove fiber and sugar alcohols, like erythritol, from the total carbohydrate count to get to the net carb count, as they do not affect your blood glucose levels. You should independently calculate nutritional information on your own and not rely on our data. The website or content herein is not intended to cure, prevent, diagnose or treat any disease. This website shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on the Website or actions you take as a result. Any action you take is strictly at your own risk.
Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD is an aesthetic medicine specialist whose work focuses on patients who are treated for obesity, metabolic syndrome, and other weight-related issues through nutritional analysis, keto diet programs, and supporting medications.
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