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    Health Food Impostors: Busting So-Called Health Food by @Deb_Lowther

    Deborah LowtherBy Updated:No Comments4 Mins Read

    Healthy eating is something many of us strive for but the truth is there are times where our efforts to make healthy choices actually end up being on the unhealthy side of health food! Confused?  I don’t blame you! How do you spot the unhealthy health food impostors? Check out this list!

    Salad
    The dressing. Be a label reader and at restaurants always check the nutrient guide for the salad dressings offered for your favorite fast food salad. Some have as much fat as  that calorie-laden burger  you are trying to avoid by choosing a salad! Go for vinegar or yogurt based dressings with only 1 gram fat per tablespoon.
    Look what I found:
    Chicken Ranch Salad at Drive thru: 31gr FAT, 590 Calories, 25gr Sugar, 1480gr Sodium
    Compared to:
    1/4lb burger at same Drive thru: 33gr FAT, 590 Calories, 10gr Sugar, 1240gr Sodium
    Peanut Butter
    Peanut butter made with JUST peanuts is an excellent health food loaded with protein, but most peanut butter has added icing sugar and hydrogenated oil! Sweeten a natural peanut butter sandwich with apple slices or bananas.
    Look what I found:
    Creamy Peanut Butter: peanuts, sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil, salt, fancy molasses, maltodextrin, icing sugar.        2tbsp  = 16gr FAT, 3gr Sugar, 8gr Protein
    Compared to:
    Natural Peanut Butter: peanuts.   2tbsp – 16gr FAT, 2gr Sugar, 10gr Protein
    Muffins
    Oatmeal-Applesauce-Muffin-debAll healthy right? Definitely a better choice than the donut you secretly really want to order.  The next time you go for the Blueberry Bran have a look at the nutritional breakdown.  You might be surprised to find our your healthy muffin has more fat than a donut!
    Look what I found:
    Blueberry Bran muffin: 13gr FAT, 280 Calories, Fibre 4gr, Sugar 24gr
    Low Fat Berry Muffin: 2.5gr FAT, 290 Calories, Fibre 2gr, Sugar 30gr
    Whole Grain Carrot muffin: 13gr FAT, 360 Calories, Fibre 4gr, Sugar 29gr
    Homemade Oatmeal Applesauce Muffin:  3.7gr FAT, 177 Calories, Fibre 4 gr, Sugar 15gr (from fruit)
    Compared to:
    Apple Fritter donut: 8gr FAT, 290 Calories, Fibre 2gr, Sugar 15gr
    Chocolate Dip donut:  14gr FAT, 270 Calories, Fibre 1gr, Sugar 16gr
    Granola Bars
    Many granola and energy bars are filled with high fructose corn syrup and contain as much fat and sugar as a candy bar!  For a quick snack with protein and fiber reach for a pear, cheese or your own mixture of almonds and dried apricots.
    Look what I found:
    28gr Chewy chocolate chip granola bar: 4gr FAT, 1gr Fibre, 9gr Sugar, 1gr Protein
    28gr Sweet & salty granola bar: 9gr FAT, 11gr Sugar, 4gr Protein
    Compared to:

    28gr  Snickers bar: 6gr FAT, .5gr Fibre, 13gr Sugar, 2gr Protein

    Smoothies
    Most smoothies start out with low fat milk and fruit, maybe a scoop of protein – what could go wrong? Generally, it is a size issue and some chains add sugars or flavoured syrups or even sherbert that is loaded with sugar.  A glass of milk with fruit is enough!
    Look what I found:
    Drive thru Mixed Berry 320ml: 150 Cal, 1.5gr FAT, 2gr Protein, 32gr Sugar
    Jamba Juice: 490 cal, 2gr FAT, 4gr Protein, 105gr Sugar
    Compared to:
    250ml glass 1% milk – 100 Cal, 2gr FAT, 8gr Protein, 13gr Sugar
    Popcorn
    Popcorn has received a lot of positive attention for being a low calorie, good fibre snack food, but beware of the movie and store bought popcorn – its loaded with fat and sodium!
    Look what I found (16 cups):
    Large movie popcorn: 57gr FAT, 1030 Calories, 630mg Sodium, 16gr Fibre
    Purchased bag popcorn: 90gr FAT, 1440 Calories, 1900mg Sodium, 19gr Fibre
    Microwave popcorn: 24gr FAT, 680 Calories, 1500mg Sodium, 12gr Fibre
    Compared to:
    Air popped Popcorn at home: 5gr FAT, 500 Calories, 10gr Sodium, 17gr Fibre
    (if you add 1/2 tsp salt is 1000mg of sodium, 12gr FAT in 1 tbsp butter)
     
    Want more healthy tips? Follow Deb on Twitter @Deb_Lowther, Pinterest and find more healthy tips on her www.RaisingHealthyKids.co website.
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    Deb Lowther is a writer, runner, wife and mom of 3. When not running in the trails, Deb is running after the kids and ensuring her own family has fun while eating healthy & staying active together. After selling their first company in 2015, the Lowthers' launched Element Nutrition and are now focused on creating nutritional products for the Boomer generation with Boomer Nutrition, and healthier kids Snack Bars with IronKids Nutrition. Deb inspires healthy families through numerous articles in print and online, encouraging others to enjoy a healthy diet, stay active and not be afraid to try new things.   Follow Deb on Twitter @Deb_Lowther 

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