For people who are always on the go, it is great to find snacks or meal replacements that can supply them with their needed vitamins and minerals throughout the day. One of the best options for them is nutrition bars. Before, nutrition bars, which are also known as energy bars or protein bars, were only used by people who always hit the gym as supplements before and after working out. But today, more and more people who are aiming to stay in shape or eat healthy snacks are consuming them.
While most nutrition bars in the market are great, there’s a reason they are not stocked next to fruits and vegetables in the grocery store. Many nutrition bars out there are made using cheap and low-quality ingredients. The worst is that some of them might be hiding lots of sugar and additives, which can cause digestive distress to people. Therefore, when choosing a nutrition bar, it is essential that you always check the label and grab the healthiest one. For example, if you are looking for a good protein bar, it’s nice to choose the best-tasting protein bar with no carbs instead of those filled with carbs and sugar.
If you are looking for the best nutrition bars, we’ve created lots of lists in our previous articles, depending on different dietary needs. Here are some of them:
But in addition to the best ones, we also would like to keep you informed about the nutrition bars that you might want to avoid. If you want to learn about these, read on as we’re giving you a list of the worst nutrition bars for your health.
1. PowerBar ProteinPlus
The PowerBar ProteinPlus nutrition bar, especially its chocolate brownie flavor, contains 27 grams of sugar from different sweeteners, such as fructose syrup, maltitol syrup, and cane invert syrup. In addition to that, it also contains a lot of processed, non-organic soy, which will not power you through any exercise or workout. These contents might only cause you some digestive issues and a spike in blood sugar.
2. ThinkThin High Protein Bar
The ThinkThin High Protein Bar in peanut butter flavor is advertised to have 20 grams of protein. That is actually a great number. However, you also need to find out where the protein comes from. In this case, it came from cheap processed sources and was added with canola oil and “natural” flavors. Along with that, it also has caseinate ingredients, such as sodium caseinate and calcium caseinate, which can suppress mineral absorption in the body. It also states having 0 grams of sugar, which may look good, but it used sugar alcohols to sweeten the bar, which can upset the digestion and make you gassy.
3. ZonePerfect Nutrition Bar
The chocolate peanut butter flavor of this nutrition bar listed corn syrup twice on its ingredients list, which is already a warning sign. It is another kind of nutrition bar that used cheap ingredients that are non-organic and processed, such as soy. It is also added with lots of vitamins that the body does not actually need or want.
4. Balance Bar
The Balance Bar cookie dough flavor is one of the nutrition bars out there that covers up its low-quality ingredients with vitamins. It contains syrups, fructose, and processed GMO-soy bar but has 23 vitamins and minerals. If this is the case, your body will just absorb lots of unhealthy sugar and oils.
5. Luna Whole Nutrition Bar
This is advertised as a nutrition bar for women. But did you know that it contains lots of sugar? In fact, it has more sugar than protein and fiber combined. It also contains processed soy in many forms. Some of those may be organic, but “soy rice crisps” are made with non-organic soy protein isolate, which is likely GMO. Also, it says that it contains natural flavor, which is a disguise for many unhealthy additives that you don’t want to know about.
6. Clif Bar
Clif Bar may be made from all organic ingredients, but it does not mean it is a good nutrition bar for your health. It’s because it still contains lots of sugar. Specifically, the chocolate macadamia nut flavor of Clif Bar has 21 grams of sugar. But not all of their nutrition bars have the same sugar content. Therefore, try to pick one that has lesser sugar content.
7. Oh Yea! One Nutrition Bar
This nutrition bar, especially its chocolate birthday cake flavor, contains some decent macronutrient values, with 1 gram of sugar, 22 grams of carbs, and 20 grams of protein. However, even if it has only 1 gram of sugar, that still comes from many artificial sweeteners, which gives it the chocolate birthday cake taste.
8. GoMacro Macrobar
The peanut butter chocolate chip nutrition bar by GoMacro Macrobar may contain 100% plant-based ingredients, but you should not be fooled. It’s because it has more calories compared to candy bars with 290 calories. Also, it has a decent amount of sugar, with 14 grams. This means that around 20% of its calories come from sugar.
These are some of the worst nutrition bars for your health. While nutrition bars are good for those who are always on the go, they should not be relied on all the time for replacing actual meals since they still lack some nutrients that balanced foods have. If you want to eat nutrition bars, make sure that you choose healthier ones and eat them in moderation. Be careful with choosing nutrition bars that are high in added sugar, fat, and artificial ingredients.