Food labelling traffic lights - sandwiches and salt

[Cyclone]

It's a bit random, but I looked at all the sandwiches on offer at lunch today at Waitrose (which just happens to be the closest supermarket at lunch time).

 

They have a traffic light system printed on them to make it easy to see how the sandwiches stack up health wise.

 

Not a single sandwich (or wrap) was green for salt content. The best you can manage is amber.

 

Like I said, a bit random, but it's a bit disappointing as well.

[PeteMorris]

It's a bit random, but I looked at all the sandwiches on offer at lunch today at Waitrose (which just happens to be the closest supermarket at lunch time).

 

They have a traffic light system printed on them to make it easy to see how the sandwiches stack up health wise.

 

Not a single sandwich (or wrap) was green for salt content. The best you can manage is amber.

 

Like I said, a bit random, but it's a bit disappointing as well.

 

I think the food labelling is abysmal. Either it's microscopic, and I struggle to read it, even with specs. Or it's written in gobbledegook and can't understand it, and even the traffic light system is crap if you're colour blind....yes I'm colour blind too!

[Cyclone]

Red/Green is the most common form of colour blindness I think, so the worst possible choice of colours for the colour blind.

[PeteMorris]

Red/Green is the most common form of colour blindness I think, so the worst possible choice of colours for the colour blind.

 

Exactly.....People really don't think of things like this. There's a hell of a lot of people who are colour blind, mostly males. Moreover, a hell of a lot of people who are, but don't know it.

 

Remember that craze maybe in the early 80's for those dotty type pictures (used these days to test colour blindness...there is a name for the test but it escapes me). I couldn't see what any of them were supposed to be...Not one!

[Eater Sundae]

It's a bit random, but I looked at all the sandwiches on offer at lunch today at Waitrose (which just happens to be the closest supermarket at lunch time).

 

They have a traffic light system printed on them to make it easy to see how the sandwiches stack up health wise.

 

Not a single sandwich (or wrap) was green for salt content. The best you can manage is amber.

 

Like I said, a bit random, but it's a bit disappointing as well.

 

Isn't bread usually fairly high in salt, so you may struggle to find a low salt sandwich. I don't eat much bread, so am not sure if there are any low salt types available.

 

I don't eat a lot of processed and "added salt" food (except the odd take away and meals out), and never add it when preparing meals at home from scratch. This is historical. My mother was very anti salt in food (because of blood pressure concerns), so I grew up being used to eating food with little or no salt, and as I started cooking for myself I carried on without the taste of salt. I'm probably bringing up my daughter the same, as sometimes she turns her nose up at some food, while we're eating out, as being "too salty".

 

However, I remember hearing something on the radio who was questioning the whole issue of "too much salt causing high blood pressure and so we should cut down on salt", by claiming that the original research (which excessively overloaded rats with salt - much, much more than we might ever eat in practice) was flawed. It also claimed that the body is well able to control its sodium levels and will get rid of any excess should we happen to take on more than we need. In fact, the bigger risk is a shortage of salt.

[Cyclone]

Exactly.....People really don't think of things like this. There's a hell of a lot of people who are colour blind, mostly males. Moreover, a hell of a lot of people who are, but don't know it.

 

Remember that craze maybe in the early 80's for those dotty type pictures (used these days to test colour blindness...there is a name for the test but it escapes me). I couldn't see what any of them were supposed to be...Not one!

 

Wouldn't traffic lights have tipped people off to being colour blind? If they don't look like 3 different colours, then you've got a problem

[Eater Sundae]

Wouldn't traffic lights have tipped people off to being colour blind? If they don't look like 3 different colours, then you've got a problem

 

Are cyclists colour blind? Sorry, I couldn't resist.

[Cyclone]

Isn't bread usually fairly high in salt, so you may struggle to find a low salt sandwich. I don't eat much bread, so am not sure if there are any low salt types available.

 

I don't eat a lot of processed and "added salt" food (except the odd take away and meals out), and never add it when preparing meals at home from scratch. This is historical. My mother was very anti salt in food (because of blood pressure concerns), so I grew up being used to eating food with little or no salt, and as I started cooking for myself I carried on without the taste of salt. I'm probably bringing up my daughter the same, as sometimes she turns her nose up at some food, while we're eating out, as being "too salty".

 

However, I remember hearing something on the radio who was questioning the whole issue of "too much salt causing high blood pressure and so we should cut down on salt", by claiming that the original research (which excessively overloaded rats with salt - much, much more than we might ever eat in practice) was flawed. It also claimed that the body is well able to control its sodium levels and will get rid of any excess should we happen to take on more than we need. In fact, the bigger risk is a shortage of salt.

 

There seems to be some support for the idea that salt is not a key factor in blood pressure.

http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/content/31/2/311.full

[PeteMorris]

Wouldn't traffic lights have tipped people off to being colour blind? If they don't look like 3 different colours, then you've got a problem

 

I was wondering if someone would come up with that....I can see the colours of a traffic light when perched on a pole at a junction....But take those colours out of that scenario and I'd struggle.

 

Once upon a time I drove taxi's for a while and had to have a medical as being fit to drive. The doctor tested my colour blindness and was astonished that I could only see a very few of the numbers or letters hidden in the dotty patterns....He asked in all sincerity, how would I manage at traffic lights? I replied, it's simple...if the light at the bottom is on...GO...and if the light at the top is on..STOP........Etc...He was a little dumbstruck but agreed 'it works'...