ReAL FOOD BLOG
Explore the latest product breakdowns, food label red flags, and clean eating tips — straight from Mandy Sacher and the Real Food Rating team.
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AI Weight-Loss Lies Are Everywhere. Here’s How Not to Get Caught Out.
AI is now everywhere in the weight-loss and nutrition space: meal plans, calorie calculators, “personalised” coaching, and instant body transformations. Some of it can be helpful. A lot of it is misleading. And some of it is outright dangerous. After appearing on A Current Affair to discuss the rise of AI-driven weight-loss scams, I wanted…
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The United States Just Did What Australia Won’t: Named Highly Processed Foods as the Problem.
The United States Just Did What Australia Won’t: Named Ultra-Processed Food as the Problem. While America rewrites its nutrition playbook, Australian families are still navigating supermarkets with guidelines from 2013.
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The Government Responded to Our Petition — Here’s What It Really Means for Aussie Families
The government has admitted the Health Star Rating system isn’t working, but they plan to make it mandatory anyway, without fixing the algorithm that misleads families into thinking ultra-processed foods are healthy choices. After more than 14,389 parents signed our PETITION calling for urgent reform of Australia’s Health Star Rating (HSR) system, I wrote to…
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The Halloween Experiment Every Parent Needs to Try (Before the Sugar Crash Hits)
Halloween is one of the most exciting nights of the year for kids, dressing up, heading out with friends, and filling their trick-or-treating buckets with colourful sweets. But for many parents, what happens afterwards isn’t quite so magical. A sleepless night ahead, tummy aches, and meltdowns often follow the sugar rush. As Australia’s leading paediatric…
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Additive Awareness Series: The Ultimate Hidden Sugar Cheat Sheet – How to Outsmart Hidden Sugar Labels
They’re marketed as healthy. They’re loaded into lunchboxes. And they’re a go-to snack for busy parents. But most supermarket muesli bars are not the nourishing snack you think they are. In fact, some of them are so ultra-processed, they contain up to 9 forms of sugar, synthetic fibres your child’s gut can’t digest, and preservatives…
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The Muesli Bar Truth: What I Found After Rating 25+ Aussie Snack Bars (And Which Ones I’d Actually Give My Kids)
They’re marketed as healthy. They’re loaded into lunchboxes. And they’re a go-to snack for busy parents. But most supermarket muesli bars are not the nourishing snack you think they are. In fact, some of them are so ultra-processed, they contain up to 9 forms of sugar, synthetic fibres your child’s gut can’t digest, and preservatives…
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Cracker Choices for Kids: How to Pick the Best + My Top Picks from Aldi, Woolworths & Coles!
Crackers are a popular go-to snack for many families. They’re convenient, tasty, and perfect for lunchboxes or a quick afternoon bite. But with so many options on the shelves, choosing the healthiest crackers for your child can feel overwhelming. While packaging might boast claims like “organic,” “wholegrain,” or “no added sugar,” these labels can often…
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High-Protein Yoghurts Exposed: My Real Food Ratings Guide to Making Informed Choices for Your Family!
Parents, we need to talk about high-protein yoghurts! As a paediatric nutritionist, I’m constantly asked about these trendy products filling our supermarket shelves. Are they really necessary? Are they healthy? And most importantly – should we be sharing them with our kids? Before we dive into specific products, let’s understand something crucial: most children are…
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Chocolate Milk Exposed: My Real Food Ratings of Popular Picks & Healthier Alternatives!
Parents, we need to talk about chocolate milk! As a paediatric nutritionist, one of the most common questions I get is: Is chocolate milk really that bad? And if so, are there any better options? Today, I’m breaking down Australia’s most popular chocolate milk drinks using my Real Food Rating System, and what I found…