Low fat and reduced calorie snacks, cakes and biscuits are becoming increasingly popular and a new study by market analysts Mintel has found that weight conscious consumers are increasingly turning to these indulgent “health foods.” Nutritionists insist however that such products are only helping people to mislead themselves about dieting and the role of “health foods.”

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Mintel discovered that around a quarter of British adults are struggling with diets, and from the British Nutrition Foundation, Sarah Stanner warned dieters not to mislead themselves about the benefits of eating low-calorie versions of their favourite snack foods. She added that eating fruit and vegetables and taking plenty of exercise is the only way to get in shape.
 
Medical experts believe that the proportion of the public who are clinically recognised as obese has tripled over the last 20 years.


The range of products available for the calorie conscious dieter has increased dramatically since the late 1990s, adding to the creation of a market worth £1.4bn a year.


To read just-food.com’s recent feature on diet foods, click here.

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