Yesterday I felt great about my decision to snack on a fiber-enriched granola bar. I knew the fiber would help lower my cholesterol and that granola is a fitness guru favorite. As I bit into one of the bar’s chocolate chunks I realized this had to be too good to be true. A glance at the packaging told me what I didn’t want to know: This ‘healthy’ food was more of a dessert than I realized. Its chocolate chunks and sugary oats are high in saturated fat, sodium, and sugar.
Many foods we consider healthy may not be as great as we think. We munch on granola, nosh on yogurt, and down fruity smoothies in the name of better health. Are these snacks more like treats than we treat them? How can we fix them?
Granola Bars and Fiber Bars have their benefits. Granola can give you a protein and calcium boost while fiber can regulate the digestive system and lower cholesterol. What you may not realize is that, while you are doing these great things, you may also be taking in things you don’t want. The amount of fats and sugars in these bars can be way more than you realize. If you chose a chocolate chip granola bar over an oatmeal raisin cookie in the name of health, you may have made the wrong choice. Don’t choose granola or fiber just because it sounds healthy. Some of these bars are just ‘cookies’ in bar form. Read labels to compare treats and make the right choice.
Smoothies have to be good for you, right? They have fiber and vitamin rich whole fruit we need. While the fruit is a great snack, smoothies usually include other things. Milk, fruit juices, and yogurt are popular additions to a smoothie. If you select a low fat or non-fat milk you have eliminated one problem. If you don’t select your fruit juice carefully, you could be loading your ‘healthy’ beverage up with sugar syrup. Most fruit juice sold in stores has high fructose corn syrup within the first 3 ingredients listed. Check you juice label to see what you are adding to your smoothie. One of the other things that may be making your smoothie unhealthy is the choice of yogurt you include.
Flavored Yogurt is yogurt, which is good for you; flavored yogurt is also ‘flavored,’ which tends to be bad for you. ‘Flavored’ could mean ‘we dumped sugar in it.’ I never buy flavored yogurt anymore. Plain yogurt is cheaper and has less ‘stuff’ in the ingredients list. If you use yogurt in a smoothie, plain will taste just fine. It is also very easy to flavor yogurt to be eaten solo. You may be surprised to find that adding sliced fruit, honey, coconut, or even chocolate chips to plain yogurt will save you some saturated fat and calories when compared to pre-flavored yogurt.
The moral of the story here: Check your labels. Never assume something is healthy just because the package has a key work or you think it has a ‘healthy’ reputation. Check for yourself to see whether your attempt to eat a little healthier may be in vain. It would be a shame to bypass a tasty snack for a less preferred option if it isn’t really that much better for you.
