Battle of the Granola Bars
Gooood morning lovelies!
My good friend called me the other day asking for advice about snack bars. She said she usually grabs a breakfast bar on her way out the door and wanted to know if this was a healthy option.
I’m so glad she brought this up, because this is something that I think is really important when it comes to knowing what you’re eating. Of course you assume because it’s a granola bar that it’s good for you right? Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Let’s take a look.
Special K Bliss Raspberry Bar
Nutrition Facts
90 kcal
17 g carb / less than 1g fiber
1g protein
9 g sugar
(And a frightening 50+ ingredient list!)
But the package says it’s only 90 calories! 90 calories of what? High fructose corn syrup, trans fats, chemicals, artificial flavorings? Personally, I’d rather eat a bar with 2x as many calories that’s made with whole, all-natural ingredients.
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Similar to my post providing tips for choosing the right cereal, here’s what I look for in a healthy on-the-run snack or meal bar.
Simply Savor’s Tips for Choosing the Right Bar
1.) Check the ingredient list and look for “whole grains” as the first ingredient listed
2.) High in fiber: At least 4 grams of fiber (keeps you fuller longer and stabilizes blood sugar)
3.) High in protein: At least 6 grams of protein (also helps to keep you feeling fuller longer)
4.) Low in sugar: Less than 10-15 grams of sugar per serving
5.) Be aware of calories: For a snack, aim for 100-200 calories. If using the bar as a meal replacement, should be between 250-350 calories
6.) Choose bars with a short list of identifiable ingredients: Chances are, if i don’t recognize the name of an ingredient, or can’t pronounce it (heelllooooo sodium hexametaphosphate? enzyme modified soy protein?), I don’t want to be putting it into my body
[Note: Avoid any foods with high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated fats/oils listed]
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My Picks for Raising the Bar: (cheesy i know)
**Kashi Snack Bars:
Nutrition Facts (for Honey Almond Flax):
140 kcal
19 g carb / 4g fiber
7g protein
5 g sugar
Pro-all natural ingredients; high protein, low sugar, whole grains
Con-NONE! I’m a Kashi girl all the way, these are great!
Nutrition Facts (for Pecan Pie):
200 kcal
22 g carb / 4g fiber
3g protein
16 g sugar
Pro- made with only 3 ingredients (dates, pecans, almonds)
Con- would like to see more protein (to keep me full); high in sugar (but these are natural fruit sugars so it’s not too bad)
Nutrition Facts (for Art’s Original Blend):
370 kcal
48 g carb / 6g fiber
9 g protein
23 g sugar
Pro- Organic, raw foods, and 100% vegan
Con- Higher in calories and sugar so be aware that this is a meal replacement, not a snack
Nutrition Facts (for Chewy Chocolate Chip):
200 kcal
18 g carb / 0g fiber
20 g protein
3 g sugar (7 g sugar alcohols)
Pro-very high in protein to keep me full for less calories
Con-ingredient list makes me a little nervous; no fiber (!!) ; artificial sweeteners (wow now that I’m writing this, I don’t know if I’ll be buying these as often)
Nutrition Facts (for Iced Oatmeal Raisin):
180 kcal
27 g carb / 3g fiber
9 g protein
13 g sugar
Pro-all natural ingredients; contains 24 vitamins+minerals; no artificial colors or flavors
Con-a little heavy on the sugar
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Fun fact: Did you know 2/3 of Americans eat breakfast bars?
What are your favorite bars? Favorite flavors? What do you look for when finding the right bar? Do you make your own?
Cheesy? Yes. Cute? Also a yes haha.
I think a lot of people are so concerned with caloric values they often forget to look at what’s really important – the ingredient list. So many people don’t know how to decode the list and I’m glad you brought up the point to look for whole grains as the first ingredient and to keep the list short.
I’ve never been big on breakfast bars but for energy/protein bars, I like Clifs. I’m actually not a big fan of the Pure Protein bars…I’m not sure if its the texture or the taste itself. High protein, good fiber content, low sugar is what I look for.
BTW I’ll so take you up on that France offer. When are we leaving?
i loove the taste of pure protein bars actually! i know so bad, i still can’t believe the nutritionals on that one!
plane leaves tonight
Love this, Kristen! Great info. My sister’s been downing Special K and South Beach bars for breakfast like it’s her job, in lieu of grocery shopping–so I’m sending this post to her right now!
Have a good day!
Sarah
I love the chocolate jocalat Larabars, Wild Bars (but they’re sooooooooooo expensive!!), and chocolate Nectar bars. Have you tried the Nectars? If you heat them in the microwave for like 20 seconds, they taste like chocolate brownies
no i haven’t tried chocolate nectar bars! i’ve never seen them at the supermarket near me–but if you say they taste like chocolate brownies then I’m sure I’ll love them
thanks for the suggestion!
I am a sucker for Z bars & lara bars!!! That’s crazy that 2/3 of us eat bfast bars – makes you try to remember what life was like “before the bfast bar” right?! They are such an integral part of my diet esp when traveling/on the go!
i know i always grab bars when i’m running between classes and need to hold myself over before i can have a real meal!
This is awesome Kristen, thanks for sharing!
I do the pure protein occasionally, Cliff has a good protein bar and I eat Larabars as snacks quite a bit. After eating bars with only a few ingredients I noticed that I could barely eat a Fiber One bar!
Great info Kristen, I’ve yet to try a ProBar but I hear they are really good.
Great post! I used to eat Chewy Granola bars because they were so low in calories but the more I learn about food and ingredients, the more I’d rather have a higher calorie bar with more wholesome or natural ingredients.
Love Larabars!
I’m a new fan of Z-Bars, love em’!
Also, hands down my favorite bar is a LaraBar. Peanut butter cookie can’t be beat, but I also enjoy the Cinnamoin Roll flavor.
Has anybody tried the PB&J flavor? I’ve heard it is great, but I cannot wait to try it. *Doing a PB&J dance because I am so dang excited!*
http://www.foodieinthecity.wordpress.com
ooh haven’t tried z bars yet, although i’ve heard a lot about them! and i am doing the pb+J dance right along with you about the new larabar flavor–i havent spotted them in stores around here just yet though!
the downfall with living in canada means we dont get the array of wonderful food bars the states has. so we either have to wait forever to get them in or i have to keep bugging the guy at my local health store to bring in certain items. love these options tho.
My favorite bars are Kashi Pumpkin Spice, Peanut Butter Cookie Luna Bar, Cashew Cookie Larabar, and I love all Nature’s Path bars!! The thinkGreen bars and thinkThin bars are yummy too- in the peanut butter flavor
I usually go with either Kashi bars or Luna bars too! Most do have a lot of sugar though, and even if they’re natural sugars from fruit, I’d rather just eat the actual fruit with a few nuts or cheese on the side. That fills me up because of the fiber in both and I know that I’m not eating any weird artificial stuff on a daily basis.
i totally agree with you about just eating the actual fruit and nuts whole instead of in a bar when convenience isn’t an issue…thanks for commenting!
I don’t know how I couldve survive without bars. They are the PUR-FECT on the go snack. My fav = zbars bars
I love Lara bars and I have tried making my own. They came out pretty decent too!
ooh i’ve wanted to try making my own too…im nervous of breaking my blender though!!
Great reviews!! I love Kashi & larabars because of the clean simple ingredients. I agree I wish Lara did have a bit more protein though!!
And about p90x – I’ve only done 2 of the DVDs at work and they were tough, girl let me tell you!! I’m sure people would see mad results.
Love the review of all the bars. It’s nice to see all of the nutrition make ups right next to each other.
Great information on all the different bars out there because there are so many these days. I totally agree with you in eating more of the wholesome foods options over an ingredient list of 50+!!!! Yikes! I used to be a huge protein bar person but my body doesn’t seem to like them to much (I suffer from food allergies). I do make my own bars plus many more snacks, etc. I like to make my own bite size snacks than bars though.
Though, I have tried the Larabars before and enjoy those if I do not have any other food options.
Taste & flava!! I love the kashi bar i just tried. Too bad they don’t have lara bars in msia!