Your Guide to Sneaky "Healthy" Condiments & Dressings
What’s really hiding in your condiments—and the clean swaps that will make you feel better
Welcome back to the Wellness Guide series, where we’re exposing the “health” foods that aren’t actually helping you feel your best—and showing you what to buy instead.
Didn’t catch Part One? It’s all about how to decode food labels and spot fake “healthy” foods—catch up here.
This week, we’re diving into salad dressings, sauces, and condiments—those fridge-door staples that seem harmless (or even healthy) but often come loaded with seed oils, added sugars, preservatives, and mystery flavorings.
Let’s clean them up and swap them out for options that actually support your health.
🔁 A Quick Reminder: The LFG Rule of Thumb for Choosing Products
🥬 Back to Basics: Shop Smart, Eat Real
Next time you're grocery shopping, stick to the perimeter of the store—that’s where the real food lives.
Think simple, single ingredient whole foods: pasture-raised eggs, leafy greens, wild-caught salmon, sweet potatoes, berries, nuts, and seeds.
📖 Flip It Over Before You Check Out
When buying something in a package, ignore the front label and flip it over to read the ingredient list.
Ask yourself: 👉 Could I buy each of these ingredients on their own at this store?
If the answer is no—or if you need a chemistry degree to understand them—it’s probably not something your body will thank you for.
🚩 Loud Labels = Quiet Warnings
Products shouting claims like “high protein,” “low sugar,” “natural,” or “gut-healthy” are often highly processed foods dressed up with clever marketing.
Real food doesn’t need to convince you it’s healthy.
Have you ever seen a head of kale brag about its fiber content? Exactly.
The healthiest foods are usually the least advertised—because they don’t need to shout to be effective. They just nourish you.
Bottom line?
Bottom line? If it’s grown in soil or swims in the sea, it’s likely a good choice.
If it was built in a lab and has a marketing team behind it, maybe not.
Choose ingredients, not inventions. 🌱
What’s Really in Your Condiments, Sauces and Dressings? A Closer Look at Common Harmful Ingredients
Before we dive into the better-for-you swaps, let’s talk about why this guide even needs to exist.
Conventional condiments, sauces and salad dressings may seem harmless—or even healthy at a glance—but the ingredient lists often tell a different story.
Many of these pantry staples are loaded with additives, preservatives, sweeteners, and industrial seed oils that can undermine your health.
Here are some of the most common problematic ingredients to watch out for—and why they don’t belong on your plate:
🛢 Seed Oils
Industrial seed oils like soybean, canola, and sunflower oil are highly processed and often oxidized by the time they hit store shelves. They're rich in omega-6 fatty acids, which can promote inflammation when consumed in excess and throw off the body’s omega-3 to omega-6 balance.
🍬 Cane Sugar & High Fructose Corn Syrup
Sugar is everywhere—even in savory sauces. Added sugars like cane sugar and high fructose corn syrup contribute to blood sugar spikes, metabolic dysfunction, and chronic inflammation. They also drive cravings and can interfere with stable energy levels.
🌿 “Natural Flavors”
This vague term may sound wholesome, but it's actually a catch-all for complex chemical mixtures. While derived from natural sources, these compounds are often highly processed, can contain dozens of ingredients, and are far from what most of us would consider truly “natural.”
🌽 Modified Corn Starch & Maltodextrin
These highly processed thickeners and stabilizers are often used to create texture and extend shelf life. They’re typically derived from genetically modified corn and can cause blood sugar spikes similar to sugar and digestive issues.
🧪 Gums and Emulsifiers
Ingredients like xanthan gum, guar gum, and other emulsifiers are used to improve texture and prevent separation. They can disrupt gut health and may contribute to digestive issues.
🍭 Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners like sucralose or sorbitol can disrupt the gut microbiome and may have metabolic side effects.
🧫 Preservatives: Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Calcium Disodium EDTA
These are used to extend shelf life and prevent spoilage, but they come with trade-offs. Some have been linked to allergic reactions, gut imbalances, and even potential carcinogenic effects.
🍮 Caramel Color
Often found in darker sauces, this synthetic colorant can contain harmful byproducts like 4-MEI, a potential carcinogen. It adds nothing nutritionally and is purely cosmetic.
These additives are hidden in plain sight—even in products labeled as “natural” or “healthy.” The good news? There are plenty of better options out there that use real, nourishing ingredients your body can recognize and thrive on. Let’s explore those next.
🧂CONDIMENTS
Heinz Organic Tomato Ketchup – Ingredients include organic sugar (still sugar!) and natural flavoring.
Hellmann’s Light Mayonnaise – Ingredients include soybean oil, modified food starch, sugar, sorbic acid, calcium disodium EDTA, and natural flavors.
Sweet Baby Ray's No Sugar Added Original BBQ Sauce – Ingredients include allulose, modified corn starch, caramel color, natural flavor, potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, xanthan gum, and sucralose.
French’s True Organics Classic Yellow Mustard – Includes natural flavors.
The lesson here is not to be fooled by labels like “organic,” “light,” or “sugar-free.” Flip the bottle over, and you’ll often find ingredients that are far from healthy…
Primal Kitchen Organic Unsweetened Squeeze Ketchup - Ingredients include: Organic Tomato Concentrate, Organic Balsamic Vinegar (Organic White Wine Vinegar, Organic Grape Must), Organic Distilled Vinegar, Salt, and less than 2% of: Organic Onion Powder, Organic Garlic Powder, Organic Spices (all real whole foods!!)
Chosen Foods 100% Avocado Oil-Based Classic Mayonnaise - Ingredients include: Avocado oil, cage-free egg yolks, filtered water, organic cage-free whole eggs, organic distilled white vinegar, organic honey, organic mustard (organic mustard seed, distilled organic vinegar, organic spices), salt, organic rosemary extract. Again, all real whole foods!
Primal Kitchen Classic BBQ Sauce Organic & Unsweetened -Ingredients include: water, organic crushed tomatoes, organic balsamic vinegar (organic wine vinegar, organic concentrated grape must), organic apple cider vinegar, organic dijon mustard (organic apple cider vinegar, water, organic mustard seed, salt, organic spices), sea salt, organic tapioca starch, organic coriander, organic cumin, organic black pepper, organic onion powder, organic chipotle powder, natural smoke flavor, organic garlic, organic cinnamon, organic garlic powder.
Primal Kitchen Organic Mustard Variety Pack - Ingredients include: water, organic vinegar, organic mustard seeds, salt, organic turmeric, water, organic mustard seeds, organic vinegar, salt, organic turmeric, organic spices.
All of these products contain real whole foods—nothing else.
You’ll feel the difference when you switch to them.
🍅SAUCES
Prego Traditional No Sugar Added Pasta Sauce - No sugar! Looks like it would be healthy, right? Nope! It’s made with canola oil, which is a highly processed, inflammatory seed oil.
Heinz Original Cocktail Sauce - Seems pretty innocent, I mean how bad could cocktail sauce really be? Veryyyy bad. This contains high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, soybean oil and natural flavorings.
Tostitos Chunky Salsa Mild Dip - You’d think salsa would just contain veggies and spices. Nope! A lot of conventional brands put natural flavorings in it.
Trader Joes Vegan Kale, Cashew & Basil Pesto - You’d think any pesto is healthy. Then you see vegan pesto made with kale and cashews—this has to be clean, right? This is why we ALWAYS apply the LFG gut check and flip the package over. When you do, you’ll find safflower oil and sunflower oil—inflammatory seed oils.
Let’s swap these for options that help our health—not hurt it—and are just as delicious!
Rao's Tomato Basil - Ingredients include: Italian Whole Peeled Tomatoes, Olive Oil, Onions, Basil, Salt, Garlic, Black Pepper, Oregano
Primal Kitchen Unsweetened Cocktail Sauce - Ingredients include: organic tomato puree (water, organic tomato paste), organic horseradish (organic apple cider vinegar, organic horseradish, water, salt), organic balsamic vinegar (organic wine vinegar, organic concentrated grape must), sea salt, organic parsley, organic tapioca starch, organic dried garlic, organic onion powder, organic garlic powder, organic cinnamon.
Ithaca Mild Salsa - Ingredients include: diced tomatoes in tomato juice, jalapeno peppers, water, onions, lime juice, cilantro, salt, garlic, vinegar, dried.
Gotham Greens Vegan Pesto - Ingredients include: extra virgin olive oil, fresh Gotham Greens basil, pine nuts, lemon juice, garlic, sea salt
🥗 DRESSING
Ken’s Light Olive Oil & Vinegar Dressing - Advertising 50% less fat and 33% fewer calories—but when we flip the bottle over, we find vegetable oil, sugar, xanthan gum, sodium benzoate, and calcium disodium EDTA as preservatives. Far from healthy. Plus, high-quality fats are incredibly good for you. Anything advertising 'low fat'? Be sure to steer clear.
Brianna’s Home Style Rich Poppy Seed Dressing - It advertises: 'Salad Dressing made with Premium Ingredients – Gluten-Free, Kosher, & Vegan.' But let’s look at the ingredients: canola oil, sugar, xanthan gum, and tocopherols. Who cares if it’s gluten-free if it’s full of seed oils, sugars, and gums!
Skinnygirl, Fat-Free, Sugar-Free Italian Salad Dressing - First off, our priority should be being healthy—not skinny. And secondly, despite the advertising, the ingredients include maltodextrin, sorbitol, salt, modified corn starch, xanthan gum, potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, calcium disodium EDTA, and sucralose. A sea of chemicals, not real whole foods.
Bolthouse Dressing Balsamic Vinaigrette - Only 30 calories a serving and 'made with real olive oil' might trick us—but when you flip it over, you’ll find sugar, caramel color, xanthan gum, and natural flavors. Despite the marketing claim "made with real olive oil," this product contains a very small amount—at most 2%—of olive oil, which is not enough to provide significant nutritional or health benefits. The main ingredients are water, vinegar, and sugar.
Primal Kitchen Oil & Vinegar Dressing - Ingredients include: avocado oil, water, organic red wine vinegar, organic stoneground mustard (organic apple cider vinegar, water, organic mustard seed, sea salt, organic spices), sea salt, organic garlic, organic lemon juice concentrate, organic black pepper, organic celery seed, organic gum acacia, organic guar gum, organic mustard flour.
Primal Kitchen Poppy Seed Dressing - Ingredients include: avocado oil, water, organic vinegar, onion purée, organic date syrup, organic apple cider vinegar, potato starch, mushroom extract (to maintain freshness), organic poppy seeds, sea salt, organic garlic powder, organic mustard flour, tamarind seed gum, organic minced onion, monk fruit extract.
Primal Kitchen Italian Vinaigrette - Ingredients include: avocado oil, water, organic red wine vinegar, sea salt, organic lemon juice concentrate, organic onion powder, organic black pepper, organic basil, organic garlic powder, organic oregano, konjac root, organic crushed red chile pepper, organic thyme.
Primal Kitchen Balsamic Vinaigrette - Ingredients include: organic balsamic vinegar (organic wine vinegar, organic concentrated grape must), avocado oil, water, sea salt, organic avocado juice concentrate, organic garlic powder, organic onion powder, konjac root, organic black pepper, organic basil, organic oregano.
Once you start making these swaps, you’ll feel the difference!
And the best part is, we don’t need to give up the foods we love—we just need to choose healthier options.
Quick reminder- This newsletter is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. I’m simply sharing my personal experience—please consult with your healthcare provider before making any changes to your health or wellness routine ❤️
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