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Bad news dieters! Low fat foods can be just as fattening as non-diet versions!

It’s bad news for dieters as a new report reveals low fat products can be just as fattening as their regular counterparts.

The report by Which? studied 12 different products labelled as low fat or light and found many of them often mislead shoppers into believing they're much healthier than they are.

Researchers found little difference between low-fat and regular products – the standard McVitie’s chocolate digestive biscuit contains 85 calories whilst the light version has 77 for example.

Another offender is Kellogg’s Special K cereal, which is marketed directly at people wanting to lose weight despite a bowl containing more calories than similar non-diet products, similarly a Tesco low fat yogurt has more calories and more sugar than a standard pot of Activia yoghurt.

Despite low fat products needing to contain less than 3% fat, consumers are often misled by products labelled as reduced fat, light or lite as they only have to be reduced by 30% compared to the original. This means that even light diet foods can be packed with hidden calories, especially as other nutritional values aren't considered.

Which? has been campaigning for more brands to use the traffic light system to help shoppers chose goods that are suitable for their lifestyle and executive director Richard Lloyd warns consumers to always check food labels carefully.

Are you shocked by these findings, or have you been confused by the nutritional content? And do you think food labels should be clearer?