Nutrition bars are full of healthy ingredients, such as nuts, berries, dark chocolate, and whole grains. They contain antioxidants, calcium, fiber, iron, magnesium, potassium, unsaturated fats, and vitamins A, B6, C, and E. But if you don’t choose the right bar, you can easily end up with unhealthy ingredients too, such as artificial flavors, palm kernal and palm oil, rice starch, salt, and too much sugar.
Fortunately, there are many healthy varieties available to help curb your appetite between meals, or steady your blood sugar when you’re away from home or are physically active.
“Look for a balanced combination of protein, fiber, fat, and total carbs that will promote satiety,” says Morgan Dickison, a registered dietitian nutritionist at Weill Cornell Medicine’s Comprehensive Weight Control Center. “Bars with protein will help stabilize blood sugars and keep you full longer compared to those in which the calories come mostly from carbohydrates. Fiber also promotes fullness.”
Look for a bar with limited, whole ingredients. For instance, the Larabar Cashew Cookie has just two ingredients, while most others have as few as six or seven. Nuts, seeds, and whole grains are a good foundation, Dickison says.
Here are some of the best ingredients in a healthy nutrition bar.
Berries. Berries are loaded with anthocyanins, an antioxidant that improves cognition, as well as digestive and heart health. They also reduce the risk of certain cancers. Also, berries, like nuts, are high in dietary fiber. In a study published in The Lancet, high levels of dietary fiber were linked with a 15 to 30 percent lower risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and colorectal cancer, and from dying from those diseases.
Nuts. The antioxidants in nuts help protect your cells from oxidative stress caused by free radicals (unstable cells that cause damage to healthy cells). Research has shown that consuming nuts can lead to higher weight loss than dietary plans that don’t include nuts. One study in the Journal of Research in Medical Sciences recorded three times more weight loss among women in the test group who ate almonds over a three-month period vs. those in the control group who didn’t consume almonds (100 women total). These participants also saw significant reductions in fasting blood sugar, body mass index, waist circumference, blood pressure, and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol.
Whole Grains. If you like the flavor of quinoa, try Purely Elizabeth or Kashi bars. Purely Elizabeth’s line of ancient grain bars is made with organic quinoa flakes and amarynth, which is high in protein, the amino acid lysine, and B vitamins. Kashi bars combine chia seeds with a whole-grain blend, including quinoa, barley, buckwheat, rye, triticale and hard red wheat. Whole grains provide a low glycemic index.
Dark Chocolate. Dark chocolate, an excellent source of antioxidants such as flavanols and polyphenols, has been linked with lowering blood pressure, increasing HDL (“good”) cholesterol and lowering LDL cholesterol. It contains copper, fiber, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc. However, limit dark chocolate to no more than 1 to 2 oz. daily, because it also contains sugar and caffeine. Try to limit sugar to 10 percent of your daily diet. Remember that sugar comes in many forms, including cane sugar, corn syrup, and honey, as well as glucose, fructose, and sucrose.
Nutrition bars could be used as a snack or meal replacement. If the latter, look for a bar high in protein and low in sugar.
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