Health foods that aren’t actually healthy

Author: Ivanhoe Newswire
Published: Updated:
Photo via MGN

If you’ve ditched the donuts and picked up the twig and flakes cereal to look good this summer, take a moment to actually read the cereal box. Just because a brand says it’s organic and made with whole grains, doesn’t mean it has less sugar than conventional brands. Look for brands that have less than six grams of sugar per serving. Below are some other “health” foods that aren’t so healthy.

There can be a lot of confusion on health foods.

“I think one of the big mysteries from a medical perspective is what do these different diets do to the body?” said Dr. Jean-Pierre Issa, Professor of Medicine at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University.

You might have some misinformation. Most veggie chips today are made of corn flour or potato starch, with only tints of vegetable powder for color. You can easily make real veggie chips at home or look for ones that start with an ingredient like “kale”, or “Brussel sprouts”. Parfaits may seem like a healthier breakfast option, but most coffee shop parfaits have at least 30 grams of sugar. You can make a better version by using plain yogurt and adding honey and fruit. And those green smoothie juices that claim to pack in spinach? Many have up to 50 grams of sugar per bottle, so it’s best to just eat your veggies without all the fuss.

“Even a 20 percent reduction of calories will have effects on your health in terms of cutting down blood sugar, cutting down weight, making you feel better,” explains Dr. Issa.

Unfortunately, yogurt covered pretzels are not much better than their chocolate covered counterparts. While the coating does contain an ingredient called “yogurt powder”, it is still mostly made up of sugar and oils.

Contributors to this news report include: Hayley Hudson, Producer; Katie Campbell, Assistant Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer and Editor.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.