It is quickly becoming widespread knowledge that many packaged foods and drinks contain added sugar. However, consumers may not know just how many of their grocery store staples are packed with extra sugar, partly because “sugar” is not always strictly labeled under that name. The article that appeared in the New York Times discussing this issue provides a list of words that really mean “added sugar” and the list is quite extensive.

The University of North Carolina conducted and released a survey that found that 60 percent of packaged foods and drinks purchased in American grocery stores include some form of added sugar. As far as individual processed foods, 68 percent had added sugar. Many of the products on the list were sauces, soups, fruit juices, and even some meat products.

In May of last year, the Food and Drug Administration introduced its new template for nutrition labels with one big change: a line for “added sugar” will be placed below the line for total sugar. This change will help consumers distinguish between sugars that naturally occur in foods versus the sugars that are added by manufacturers.