Granola Bars: Candy Bars in Disguise
Walk down any grocery aisle and you’ll see granola bars marketed as the perfect healthy snack. A 2016 New York Times survey of about 2,000 Americans and 672 nutritionists revealed that while more than 70% of Americans described granola bars as “healthy,” less than a third of nutritional experts agreed. The truth is much more shocking than you’d expect. Despite their health halo, many granola bars are full of added sugar, coated in chocolate and dressed up with a little protein powder—making them nothing more than a glorified candy bar. “I’ve seen bars with as much as 25 grams of added sugar, which is ludicrous,” says Andy Bellatti, a registered dietitian and strategic director of Dietitians for Professional Integrity.
Some contain as much sugar, carbs, and calories as candy bars. That innocent-looking snack in your pantry might be sabotaging your health goals without you even realizing it. Many popular brands pack more sugar into a single bar than you’d find in a handful of cookies, cleverly disguised behind wholesome-sounding ingredients and earth-toned packaging.
Veggie Chips: The Ultimate Health Food Impostor
People think these heavily-processed snacks are healthy because they’re made of vegetables. But veggie sticks and straws lack fiber and protein, and are practically devoid of nutrients. They may be a bit lower in fat than chips, but why not just eat the real thing? The marketing genius behind these products is truly remarkable – they’ve convinced millions that deep-fried vegetables somehow retain their nutritional value.
If it comes in chip form, chances are it’s not really good for you. Just like regular potato chips, most veggie chips are deep-fried in vegetable oil and loaded with salt. The colorful appearance might fool your eyes, but your body knows the difference. These processed snacks undergo the same manufacturing process that strips away any beneficial nutrients the vegetables once had.
Protein Bars: Energy Bars Masquerading as Health Food
Protein bars might not immediately come to mind when you think of unhealthy foods, but some aren’t as beneficial as they seem. Many bars sold today contain large amounts of ultra-processed ingredients, artificial sweeteners and added sugars. A hearty alternative to granola bars, protein bars have ballooned into a $4.5 billion dollar industry, with some analysts predicting the market will grow to $7 billion by 2030. But don’t be fooled by the flashy packaging and high protein count; some protein bars masquerade as “healthy,” despite containing the calories of a candy bar.
But many don’t deliver the benefits you might expect. Even some of the ones with health claims like “high in protein” are nothing more than glorified candy bars, says Natalie Allen, RD, a clinical associate professor of nutrition and team dietitian at Missouri State University in Springfield. The protein content that sounds so impressive on the wrapper often comes at the cost of excessive sugar and artificial ingredients that your body doesn’t need or want.
Rice Cakes: The Empty Calorie Champion
They’re highly processed and often so low in fat that you can consume large quantities without ever feeling full. This can increase blood sugar and cause an insulin surge, promoting fat storage. You think you can eat a lot of them since they’re lower in calories. But rice cakes are often artificially flavored and are really just a carb with little to no nutrition.
These styrofoam-like circles have somehow earned a reputation as the ultimate diet food, but they’re nutritional disasters waiting to happen. These little misleaders are a nutrient “zero” and do nothing but put your insulin and blood sugar on a roller coaster. You’d get more nutritional value from eating the cardboard packaging they come in.
Flavored Yogurt: Sugar Bombs in Health Food Packaging
That strawberry swirl fruit-on-the-bottom or chocolate chip crunch topping in your yogurt? It often packs a sugary punch. In fact, some flavored yogurts contain more sugar in one serving than some candy bars. Plain, organic yogurt contains gut-promoting live bacteria, but when sugary jams and “fruit” are added, you’re also consuming table sugar and other processed ingredients.
For those who aren’t lactose-intolerant, yogurt can be a healthy choice. However, flavored and “fruit on the bottom” yogurts can contain a surprising amount of sugar in just a small serving. For example, a 5.3-ounce container of Dannon Strawberry Fruit on the Bottom yogurt contains a hefty 15 grams of added sugar. That’s more sugar than many desserts, hidden behind the wholesome image of cultured dairy.
Smoothies: Liquid Candy with a Health Halo
Home-made smoothies can be power-packed with nutrients. But grab-and-go smoothies, even from your best local smoothie shop or grocery store, are often jam-packed with added sugar (often, from fruit juice) and calories. You can run up 300-700 calories with this quick “snack,” which won’t keep you feeling full like a good snack should.
Commercially available smoothies may have lots of juice — and very few whole fruits or veggies. For instance, Smoothie King’s Veggie Lemon Ginger Spinach smoothie lists four types of fruit juices before you get to the spinach and kale. “The perception is you’re drinking healthy greens, but it’s mostly just green-tinted fruit juice,” Linsenmeyer says. That vibrant green color tricks your brain into thinking you’re drinking vegetables, when you’re really consuming what amounts to liquid candy.
Fruit Juice: Concentrated Sugar Water
It’s easy to assume that fruit drinks are just drinks that contain fruit, right? Unfortunately this is just another clever marketing ploy. Many of these drinks contain very little of the good stuff (fruit) and are instead packed full of concentrate and sugar, meaning you could be popping a popper in your child’s lunchbox that’s high in kilojoules and low in fibre.
Even pure fruit juice without added sugars is a concentrated source of natural sugar that your body processes much differently than whole fruit. Whole fruits in a blender beat fruit juice, which delivers concentrated sugar and less fiber. When you drink juice, you’re getting all the sugar from multiple pieces of fruit but none of the fiber that would slow down absorption and keep you satisfied.
Trail Mix: The Portion Control Nightmare
Traditional trail mix sounds healthy enough – nuts, dried fruit, maybe some seeds. But commercially prepared versions are calorie bombs waiting to explode your daily intake. Most brands load their mixes with chocolate candies, yogurt-covered raisins, and enough sodium to make your blood pressure monitor weep. It can be easy to assume that Chex Mix would be healthier, due to it containing a variety of healthier options such as rye chips and nuts. Unfortunately, like other savory foods, it contains a high level of sodium. The Bold Party blend in particular has almost a quarter of the recommended salt intake in just one cup.
The real problem with trail mix isn’t just the ingredients – it’s the complete lack of portion awareness. Those tiny pieces make it incredibly easy to mindlessly consume hundreds of calories without feeling satisfied. You’ll find yourself reaching for handful after handful, thinking you’re making a healthy choice while actually sabotaging your nutrition goals.
Baked Chips: The Lesser of Two Evils Trap
The word “baked” on a chip bag has become the ultimate health food marketing trick. Companies have convinced consumers that removing the deep-frying process somehow transforms processed potatoes into health food. Yes, they’re probably better than potato chips, but it’s precisely because you think they’re healthier that you tend to eat more than you should. “Unless you’re indulging, get your whole grains from more nutritious sources such as quinoa, wild rice, or beans,” Shape.com recommends.
These chips are still heavily processed, loaded with refined carbohydrates, and designed to trigger the same addictive eating patterns as their fried counterparts. The slightly lower fat content gives people permission to eat larger quantities, often resulting in consuming more calories than they would with regular chips. It’s a psychological trap that food manufacturers have mastered.
Energy Drinks: Caffeine and Sugar Masquerading as Performance
Many of us think of coffee as a calorie-less snack that’s great at combating a dip in energy. “While that’s true and coffee can be a good choice, remember that your body might actually be telling you something with that energy lull,” says Mills, explaining that some calories may in fact be in order. “Drinking coffee might disguise your hunger, but if you’re denying your body sustenance at some point it will catch up with you—especially in the afternoon you could be setting yourself up for being starving for dinner, at which point you’ll consume everything in sight.”
Energy drinks take this problem to an extreme level, combining massive doses of caffeine with shocking amounts of sugar. They promise enhanced performance and sustained energy, but deliver nothing more than a temporary buzz followed by an inevitable crash. The marketing focuses on athletic performance and mental clarity, but the reality is a cocktail of artificial stimulants that can wreak havoc on your nervous system and blood sugar levels.
Frozen Yogurt: Ice Cream’s Sneaky Cousin
While fro yo itself is a good treat, it’s easy to eat it the wrong way. “People go to a frozen yogurt place and think ‘Hooray, I’m being so good by having yogurt instead of ice cream, I can pile peanut butter cups and chocolate syrup on top.’ What was initially a good choice is now 600 to 900 calories,” says Angel Planells, MS, RDN, Seattle-based founder of ACP Nutrition, and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Your best bet instead is to go light on the extras, he suggests: “Two or three toppings max—think fruit, nuts, maybe a small drizzle of chocolate syrup—otherwise you may as well just eat some ice cream.”
The self-serve model at frozen yogurt shops is a nutritionist’s nightmare. People convince themselves they’re making a healthy choice by choosing yogurt over ice cream, then proceed to load it with enough toppings to create a sugar bomb that would make a sundae blush. The portion sizes spiral out of control when you’re the one dispensing, and the “healthy” label gives people permission to overindulge without guilt.
Fruit Snacks: Gummy Candy in Fruit Clothing
This is not a healthy snack. “These snacks are mostly sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin,” says Dr. Landry. He explains, “They contain little or no real fruit and are essentially candy in disguise. There are some fruit snacks that are at least better options because they include real fruit as their first and primary ingredient.”
Fruit strings and fruit leathers are advertised as a healthy and ‘natural’ lunchbox snack, but they’re actually berry misleading. These treats have been highly processed to remove all the water content, leaving it with loads of sugar and lacking in the nutrients and vitamins that fresh fruit contain. They might be shaped like fruit or claim to be made from fruit, but they’re nutritionally equivalent to gummy bears with better marketing. The processing eliminates any beneficial compounds while concentrating the sugars into candy form. Your kids would be better off eating actual candy – at least then you’d know exactly what you’re giving them instead of falling for the fruit masquerade.
