Are 'diet', 'low-carb' or 'gluten-free' labels your diet companions?

New Delhi, March 4 People have developed a sense of a healthy lifestyle in recent years as a result of making conscious choices. Many fitness enthusiasts eat healthier foods because everything counts.

Suhasini Sampath, Co-Founder of Yoga Bar, earned a CA #50 AIR, MBA from London Business School and Wharton, has founded the Yoga Bar with her sister, Co-founder and CEO Anindita Sampath. The name came to them while attending a yoga class. Suahasini speaks to life about the brand's journey and how one should be cautious when purchasing food packaged with labels that aid weight-loss but don't necessarily mean a healthy lifestyle.

Read Excerpts:

Q: What was it that snagged you so hard in a yoga class that you decided to open Yogabar?

A: The sense of immateriality of yoga was a huge part of both my and Anindita's lives. It gave us what we call the goodness of gratitude, to cultivate a healthy relationship with one's life, surroundings, and most importantly one's body. When we initially got into the corporate rigmarole, we worked late hours every day away from family and began finding it very difficult to sustain a healthy diet back then. Healthy snacking options were not widely known but we did notice an unexpressed demand for them. That's when Yoga Bar took form and grew tremendously over the past few years.

Q: Debunk the myth that nutrition information labels in recent years have all been sugar-coated.

A: All that glitters isn't gold and all that says "diet", "low-carb", or "gluten-free" isn't your weight-loss companion. Many times, the food industry's advertisements fool us into believing that they care for our health and wellness, thanks to a few labels on their packets. That is what we call a 'Health Halo Effect'. Employing good marketing techniques to brainwash potential customers leads to mixed messaging under a false premise.

While a few of these buzzwords hold some merit, we aim to provide every consumer with as much information we can for them to make an informed choice. We brought the clean label revolution to India and now the industry is following suit. Yoga Bar, as our brand proposition, calls out each ingredient for its naturality.

We believe if you can't pronounce an ingredient, it shouldn't go into your body. That's why all Yogabar products are made from all-natural whole nuts, fruits and whole grains. No secret ingredients and absolutely nothing artificial just a delicious way of getting your body essential nutrients like fibre, protein and antioxidants among others.

Q: How's your brand different from others?

A: Yogabar set out to improve the snacking habits of Ind and make consumers more aware of what they're eating with a promise of complete transparency in what the products offer and consist of.

Each of the ingredients that we choose has definite nutritive value. We stay away from ingredients that contribute to empty calories. Our use of sugar is minimal. We don't use any artificial sweeteners, preservatives, or colouring agents. The bulk of any of our products by calories is one of the following ingredients: nuts and seeds, whole grains, and dried fruit; all of which are locally sourced.

The guiding principle that led the brand journey was to offer a product, designed by nutritionists and not marketers, that promises 100 per cent clean and natural ingredients with exemplary taste.

We also advocate a 'No-Maida' policy, unlike other brands, having recently launched our childrens' nutritional snacking segment with new mixes, 'Yo Chos and Yo Fills' with the Power of seven consisting of five whole grains