Cyclists limiting sugars
If you want a shortbread-style snack while limiting sugars, compare the sugars figure with total carbohydrate and read the ingredients of the exact biscuit you intend to buy.
Who is this choice for?
People planning food for a longer ride
If you are choosing something to carry and eat during a ride, consider how long you will be active and why you need the snack. University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust advises that activity lasting longer than 60 minutes may call for a carbohydrate-containing snack suited to the activity.
Cyclists managing diabetes
A sugar-free label does not identify a biscuit as suitable for managing a low blood glucose level. University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust distinguishes snacks chosen for glucose management according to glucose levels, trends and the type of exercise; follow your individual exercise-management plan.
What matters when choosing a cycling snack?
Decide whether you want a biscuit as a treat or food for the ride itself. Then compare the exact products on the same nutrition basis and check the portion you expect to eat.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar-free claim | Check sugars per 100g on the exact pack, not just the name of a range. For solid foods in Great Britain, Business Companion’s permitted nutrition claims guidance sets a maximum of 0.5g sugars per 100g for a sugar-free claim; the claim does not set a limit on total carbohydrate. | I want a shortbread-style biscuit while limiting sugars, so a different free-from label or a less-sweet taste would not answer my question. |
| Ride food | Check carbohydrate for the portion you plan to carry and consider when you would eat it. University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust advises choosing a carbohydrate-containing snack suited to the activity when exercise lasts longer than 60 minutes; a sugar-free biscuit is not automatically a fast-acting snack. | For a longer ride, I need to choose food for the activity, rather than treat an ordinary or sugar-free shortbread biscuit as purpose-made fuel. |
| Ingredients | Read the current ingredient and allergen information. Nutz4Nuts lists maltitol and isomalt in Gullon Sugar Free Shortbread Biscuits 330g; check the precise product rather than transferring its ingredients to other Gullon biscuits. | Sweeteners or particular ingredients matter to me, so I want to know what is in the biscuit I will actually eat. |
| Comparable portions | Use per-100g figures to compare different packs, then check the stated per-biscuit or per-serving figures for your portion. Walker’s Shortbread lists 16.2g sugars per 100g for its Shortbread Fingers; Dean’s lists 17.1g per 100g for Traditional Shortbread Fingers 125g. Those figures describe specific products, not every biscuit from either brand. | I want to compare biscuits on the same basis before working out what the portion I carry contains. |
Common shortbread shopping mistakes
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Assuming sugar-free means suitable ride fuel
Nutz4Nuts lists 68g carbohydrate per 100g for Gullon Sugar Free Shortbread Biscuits 330g despite listing less than 0.5g sugars per 100g. Neither figure alone establishes that the biscuit suits a particular point in a ride.
Decide whether you want a biscuit as a treat or food for exercise. If you manage diabetes, do not substitute a sugar-free biscuit for the snack specified in your individual plan for a low blood glucose level.
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Reading gluten-free or wheat-free as sugar-free
The Walker’s gluten-free shortbread listed on Joybuy includes sugar in its ingredients. M&S also lists a Made Without Wheat shortbread; that description addresses wheat, not sugars.
Check the sugars figure and ingredients on the exact pack whenever limiting sugars is your priority.
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Comparing a biscuit with 100g of another product
A per-biscuit sugars figure and a per-100g figure refer to different amounts of food. Waitrose and Sainsbury’s each list 3.0g sugars per biscuit for the specified fingers in their product information, but that alone is not a like-for-like comparison with another pack’s per-100g figure.
Compare per 100g first, then use each pack’s serving information to assess the portion you expect to eat.
Brands and specific biscuits to compare
A brand name does not establish the sugars or ingredients of every biscuit in its range; use these product-specific details to decide which packs merit a closer look.
Gullon
The Gullon Sugar Free Shortbread Biscuits 330g listed by UK retailer Nutz4Nuts are a shortbread option for shoppers limiting sugars.
- Nutz4Nuts lists less than 0.5g sugars and 68g carbohydrate per 100g for that product.
- The listing names maltitol and isomalt. Check the current pack; these details should not be assumed to apply to other Gullon biscuits.
Walker’s Shortbread
Its conventional Shortbread Fingers are an option when a sugar-free biscuit is not required.
- Walker’s Shortbread lists wheat flour, butter, sugar and salt, with 16.2g sugars per 100g, for its Shortbread Fingers.
- A separately listed Walker’s gluten-free shortbread on Joybuy also contains sugar; gluten-free does not mean sugar-free.
Dean’s
Compare Dean’s traditional and all-butter fingers by their precise product and pack size.
- Dean’s lists 17.1g sugars per 100g for Traditional Shortbread Fingers 125g and 17.7g per 100g for All Butter Shortbread Fingers 150g.
- Neither of those specified products meets a sugar-free priority.
Waitrose
Waitrose Shortbread Fingers have both per-100g and per-biscuit nutrition figures for portion comparisons.
- Waitrose lists 14.9g sugars per 100g and 3.0g per biscuit for its Shortbread Fingers.
- Waitrose cautions that recipes can change, so check the label on the pack you buy.
Sainsbury’s
Its Highland All Butter Shortbread Finger Biscuits 200g have a stated per-biscuit serving.
- Sainsbury’s lists 14.8g sugars per 100g and 3.0g per biscuit for this product.
- Those figures do not make the specified fingers a sugar-free option.
M&S
Its shortbread range includes a Made Without Wheat All Butter Shortbread Rounds 150g product.
- The M&S range identifies a wheat-free choice for shoppers comparing that ingredient requirement.
- Made Without Wheat does not establish that the rounds are sugar-free; check the exact pack’s sugars and ingredients.
A Joybuy biscuit option
This option is a sugar-free-labelled digestive biscuit, not shortbread. Consider it only if a different type of biscuit meets what you want from a cycling snack.
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Gullon Zero Sugar Free Original Digestives 400g
This is a digestive biscuit rather than shortbread for someone considering a sugar-free-labelled biscuit. Check the current pack’s ingredients and carbohydrate for the portion you intend to eat; its sugar-free name alone does not establish whether it suits your ride.
Questions about shortbread and cycling
Does sugar-free shortbread contain no carbohydrate?
No. Nutz4Nuts lists less than 0.5g sugars but 68g carbohydrate per 100g for Gullon Sugar Free Shortbread Biscuits 330g. Check the carbohydrate information on the current pack for the portion you intend to eat.
Can I rely on sugar-free shortbread for a low blood glucose level during a ride?
Do not assume a sugar-free biscuit serves that purpose. University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust distinguishes fast-acting carbohydrate snacks used for glucose management from other exercise snacks; follow your individual diabetes team’s exercise plan.
What should I check on a shortbread pack labelled sugar-free?
Check sugars per 100g, total carbohydrate and the ingredients of the exact product. For solid foods in Great Britain, Business Companion’s permitted nutrition claims guidance sets a maximum of 0.5g sugars per 100g for a sugar-free claim; that condition does not mean the food contains no carbohydrate.
Is gluten-free shortbread also sugar-free?
Not necessarily. The Walker’s gluten-free shortbread listed on Joybuy includes sugar among its ingredients, so check the sugars information separately when that matters to your choice.