I’ve been requested many occasions over the previous few years to do a evaluation of the Yuka app. It’s all the time fascinating seeing apps that purport to assist folks make higher decisions with their meals, as a result of inevitably these apps scale back these decisions to some arbitrary class of ‘good’ and ‘dangerous.’
How does Yuka decide if a meals is ‘good’ or ‘dangerous’? And what’s the profit or hurt of utilizing an app like this? Let’s get into it.
What’s the Yuka App?
The Yuka app was initially launched in France in 2017 and later launched in Canada and the US in 2022. In response to their web site, they’ve over 55 million customers.
The app permits customers to scan barcodes of meals and beauty merchandise and provides them a ranking of how “wholesome” or not they’re. For merchandise with a decrease rating, the app suggests another option that they deem to be ‘higher’.
For this Yuka app evaluation, we’ll stick with the meals and diet facet of the Yuka app.
Once you scan a product, it provides you an total rating and ranking after which breaks down the optimistic and detrimental attributes of a product based mostly on the Yuka app scoring system, which we are going to get to.
The app additionally classifies meals as “good” or “dangerous” based mostly on the general rating.
Yuka additionally prides itself on being impartial and never influenced by meals firms. There’s a premium, paid model of the app and that’s how they generate income.
How does the Yuka app rating merchandise?
The Yuka app scores merchandise based mostly on three elements: dietary high quality is 60% of the rating, the presence of components is 30%, and a product being natural or not is 10%. In response to the Yuka app’s web site, this 10% is a “bonus” that’s routinely given to natural merchandise.
The scoring system for dietary high quality is predicated on a technique adopted by a number of European nations referred to as Nutri-Rating. Nutri-Rating grades the dietary high quality of meals merchandise based mostly on power (energy), sugars, saturated fat, sodium, fibre, and protein and of fruit, greens, legumes and nuts. A front-of-package labeling system is then used, which breaks down meals into 5 classes based mostly on diet high quality. The system charges meals from ategory A to E, the place A signifies larger dietary high quality and E is decrease.
The classes are given a shade based mostly on a visitors mild, the place the upper classes are inexperienced, descending to yellow after which crimson, relying on the general rating.
There may be analysis on Nutri-Rating however as I’ve mentioned many occasions, simply because analysis exists, doesn’t imply it’s good analysis. This research discovered associations (not causations) that utilizing this technique has advantages on well being and decreased mortality, however these findings have been weak total, and lots of elements comparable to genetics and environmental elements weren’t considered. The research used meals frequency questionnaires, that are notoriously inaccurate, to evaluate dietary patterns. They solely assessed diets at baseline, after which adopted up a number of years later. We all know that individuals can change their consuming habits and life-style habits over time, so making conclusions based mostly on one survey at one cut-off date doesn’t inform us a lot.
I’ve written about the right way to interpret diet analysis right here.
Once you use the Yuka app to scan a meals merchandise, it provides you a numerical rating out of 100 and a ranking of both “wonderful,” “good”, “poor,” or “dangerous.” For instance, the goldfish crackers I scanned got a rating of seven/100 (dangerous) as a result of that they had components that Yuka says needs to be averted, and an excessive amount of sodium and energy based on the app. A number of the optimistic attributes given have been that the crackers had 3g of protein, and have been low in saturated fats.
The pure peanut butter I scanned was given 69/100 (good), however misplaced factors for being too excessive in energy and saturated fats.
Categorizing meals as “good” or “dangerous” is a horrible follow. It will possibly create guilt and disgrace round meals and consuming, and it’s fully arbitrary. There are not any good or dangerous meals. Any meals can match right into a diverse weight-reduction plan, and meals ought to by no means be related to morality-based labels.
This kind of narrative doesn’t assist anybody be more healthy (particularly emotionally – and that issues simply as a lot as bodily well being), and it tends to create extra confusion round diet. Peanut butter has a lot of wholesome fat, nutritional vitamins and minerals. This isn’t the 80’s once we have been all avoiding fats.
I can’t even think about anybody giving peanut butter factors off for being excessive in energy – it’s a NUT BUTTER. It’s additionally full of diet (and low in saturated fats!). High quality of energy issues!
Labeling meals nearly as good or dangerous can even create worry and anxiousness round meals, and lead folks to develop orthorexic kind habits the place they turn into overly centered on making wholesome decisions. That is horrible for our psychological well being and takes away from the truth that we don’t eat meals in isolation. It’s the totality of our diets that matter.
For those who’re consuming a weight-reduction plan stuffed with complete and minimally processed meals, you shouldn’t need to care concerning the ‘rating’ of your crackers or peanut butter or no matter.
The Yuka app ranks meals with larger quantities of saturated fat as “dangerous,” or a minimum of lowers their rating. Dairy merchandise are significantly affected by this ranking system as a result of they’re naturally larger in saturated fats. Pointers for saturated fats consumption are to maintain it at lower than 10% of our complete calorie consumption. Once I scanned cheese, it received a low ranking as a result of it was too excessive in saturated fats and in addition misplaced factors for being too excessive in energy and sodium.
Meals comprise a wide range of vitamins, and whereas cheese could have extra saturated fats (in comparison with lower-fat milk or yogurt for instance), it’s a good supply of protein, calcium and different nutritional vitamins and minerals. Analysis additionally means that the saturated fats in dairy merchandise will not be a threat issue for irritation or coronary heart illness.
Decreasing the rating due to one side is problematic, and letting that decide the general dietary worth of the meals, simply leads folks to be confused about making wholesome decisions.
The calorie ranking system additionally appears a bit off to me. Cheese had 120 energy per serving and was deemed “a bit too caloric,” however 2% milk was thought of “low energy” at 130 per cup. One meals could also be larger in energy than one other, however that meals may be extra satiating. As soon as once more, this categorization can result in obsessive behaviours round meals and counting energy. Not wholesome.
Yuka app and components
Earlier than I say something, let me share that I discovered this a part of their ranking system to be fully ludicrous.
It instructed me that the monocalcium phosphate in Goldfish Crackers was “hazardous,” however the rationalization they gave doesn’t show something. It solely states that getting an excessive amount of phosphorous can result in issues. An excessive amount of of something is usually a dangerous factor, however in case you’re going to touch upon the hazards of random components, it’s important to qualify these feedback with the precise quantity of this additive within the product, and the way a lot of the product you would need to ingest to trigger hurt.
Extremely, the app additionally categorized the monosodium glutamate (MSG) in my daughter’s Takis as ‘hazardous,’ when science constantly refutes that. The 14 research that Yuka cites to again up their claims aren’t convincing and look like cherrypicked to swimsuit their narrative. Rodent research, cell research, previous research, horribly accomplished research, even a research that discovered no opposed results of MSG on people.
Possibly Yuka thinks the common individual isn’t going to verify their citations, however I positive as heck am.
I reviewed the analysis round MSG. Learn my publish about whether or not MSG is protected, right here.
This whole factor can result in chemophobia round meals, making folks suppose that what they’re consuming is poisonous. In actuality, all meals are completely protected. Meals components are effectively regulated in Canada and the US, and there are limits on how a lot can be utilized.
Ought to your weight-reduction plan be comprised fully of Froot Loops? In fact not. However let’s method our diets with some nuance and science right here.
PS: Froot Loops received a better rating than Multigrain Cheerios and Goldfish crackers.
Natural meals and Yuka app
After the entire Yuka app ‘additive’ scenario, I’m unhappy to say that I’m not stunned within the least by what they are saying about natural meals.
The web site cites the well being advantages of an natural weight-reduction plan and states that natural meals are larger in antioxidants. Yuka states that individuals who eat extra natural meals have a decreased threat of most cancers, diabetes, and of being chubby or overweight. They cite research to again up these claims, however these research solely present associations and never causation.
That’s as a result of there are not any direct hyperlinks between natural meals and improved markers of well being. None.
I’ve truly written concerning the research they cited that reveals that individuals who eat extra natural meals have a decrease threat of most cancers. There was a media frenzy when this research got here out, however what they don’t say is that individuals who eat extra natural meals are inclined to have more healthy diets and existence total in addition to higher entry to medical care, larger socioeconomic standing, and extra time for bodily exercise. These are all elements that may impression illness threat way over simply consuming natural meals over typical.
When the Yuka app suggests a “more healthy” various to a product, it’s normally an natural model that’s going to be costlier and this may lead folks to really feel dangerous about their meals decisions, and we don’t want any extra of that going round.
Natural meals aren’t nutritionally superior to traditional meals. With costs of meals already being so excessive, most individuals can’t afford to eat natural meals. As a dietitian, I don’t advocate natural over typical, and I don’t purchase natural meals myself.
There are many natural meals which might be ultra-processed, comparable to cookies, crackers or frozen entrees. Whether or not natural or not, we needs to be consuming much less of those.
There may be completely no justification for Yuka to provide an automated 10% level bonus to natural meals, and this can be a lifeless giveaway that the app is principally non-evidence based mostly rubbish.
Yuka app evaluation: can Yuka assist us make higher meals decisions?
With regards to processed or packaged snack meals that rating low on Yuka, the app will recommend “more healthy” alternate options. The alternate options could also be decrease in sodium or sugar, however are they actually going to be an appropriate various for the individual based mostly on their preferences, funds, and many others?
For instance, the Goldish cracker’s top-rated various was an natural, gluten-free cracker that in my view, tastes like demise and in addition prices way more. What number of children need Mary’s crackers? Severely, even I don’t need these issues. Can we should be guilting mother and father into shopping for costlier alternate options when the unique is completely protected?
If the app suggests, for instance, selecting an natural cookie that’s made with natural sugar, it could have a better rating, but it surely isn’t a more sensible choice. Your physique goes to digest that sugar the identical manner as typical sugar, and scoring issues this manner is deceptive. Sugar is sugar, and natural sugar will not be more healthy.
Most of us know what meals are nutritious and that make us really feel good. Probably the most nutritious meals don’t usually include a barcode that may be scanned, however not every thing we eat needs to be bodily nourishing. A nutritious diet has a wide range of meals….and no guilt connected.
Consuming extra complete meals and fewer ultra-processed ones is all the time perfect, and we don’t want the app to inform us that.
The shortage of science on this app’s scoring system, plus the worry, disgrace, and anxiousness it might create round meals, outweigh any profit it could have.
I wouldn’t advocate the Yuka app to anybody.
