Britain's saltiest sarnie
Thursday 23 April 2009
Do you regularly eat shop-bought sandwiches without checking the label? Next time you sit down to scoff an apparently healthy sandwich for lunch, stop and read its nutritional values.
A study by Which? magazine has found that Subway’s six-inch meatball marinara sandwich contains a whopping 4.4g of salt. That’s the equivalent of 11 packets of Walkers Ready Salted crisps and more than 70% of your recommended daily salt intake.
Researchers also analysed the nutritional values of sandwiches from retailers such as Asda and Pret a Manger, and found many contain as much fat as a Big Mac.
Chicken sandwiches often seem like the healthy option, but Pret’s Herb Chicken and Rocket sandwich contains 23g of fat and 2.1g of salt, on par with the McDonald’s burger.
When choosing a sandwich it’s also important to check its saturated fat content. Saturated fat is the dangerous type that helps produce cholesterol and clog the arteries.
And watch out because Asda’s Vintage Cheddar Ploughman’s contains 15.2g of it– over 50 per cent more than the Big Mac’s 10g.
As a result of its findings, Which? is calling for all food outlets to put nutritional information on their packs and shelves. Pret a Manger currently only provides the values on its website or customers ask in store.
Sandwiches may be contributing to the nation’s obesity, with Britons spending £5.5 billion a year on commercially made sandwiches.
But if you don’t have time for anything other than a shop bought sandwich, don’t worry. There are other options out there and some retailers are making an effort to make their snacks healthier.
A spokesman for Subway said that by June all its products would contain on average 15 per cent less salt.
You can also check out Pret’s website where you can find out the nutritional values of all their products, allowing you to make an informed choice next time you nip in for lunch.
But if you’re hoping for a bikini body by summer, take a Closer tip and swap your sandwich for a salad which is both tasty and lower in saturated fat.
By Martiena van der Meer
Posted by fifitrixiebelle
RE: Britain's saltiest sarnie
I love Pret sanwiches but I would appreciate it if they displayed the nutritional values on the packaging as I like to be careful about calories and saturated fat content
Posted 27/04/2009 12:46:56