Monday, 26 October 2009
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100-Calorie Healthy and Unhealthy Snacks
I was recently volunteering at another health tradeshow where we set up different tables and health assessment stations. One of the tables that I worked at showed examples of snacks ranging around approximately 100 calories. We separated the snacks into two categories: healthy vs unhealthy
Healthy 100 Calorie Snacks
Some of the above examples include:
- 1/2 an avocado
- 100g yogurt
- 1/2 an apple with 2 tsp peanut butter
- 4 rice crackers with 2 Tbsp cottage cheese
These foods are healthy because they are part of the four food groups. They are nutrient-dense, high in fiber, and low in sodium because these foods are not processed! These foods will give you more bang for your buck in calories and help to keep you fuller for longer.
Unhealthy 100 Calorie Snacks
Some of the above examples include:
- Packaged instant oatmeal
- Quaker Granola Bars
- Lays 100-calorie Classic Potato Chips
- And other 100-calorie packaged snacks
People were most surprised by the oatmeal being in the unhealthy snacks category. Oatmeal is great! However, packaged instant oatmeal is also high in sodium and sugar. Although instant oatmeal is convenient, it is a much better route to cook your oatmeal from scratch using rolled oats. This way, you can control what goes inside! You can choose how much additional sugar you want or choose different types of sweeteners (eg. Splenda, maple syrup, honey, etc.) I like to add an egg in my breakfast oatmeal to add more protein to keep me fuller or ground flaxseed for healthy fats (you can't taste the flaxseed). Although instant oatmeal doesn't taste salty, it still has additional sodium added to it as it was processed.
One difference you can see between the two categories is that the foods in the unhealthy section are all processed and packaged! It's great that they are portion-sized into 100 calorie bags. This is better than mindlessly eating out of a large bag in front of the television! However, these choices are not as good as others. Cookies and chips do not fit into the four food groups and do not contain as many vitamins, minerals, and fiber as the foods in the healthy category.
Everything in moderation! Try your best to make SMART choices!
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Comments (27)
those 100 calorie snack things (in the bad section)
are HORRIBLE.
empty calories make me crave more D:
oatmeal is bad?! Oh no, that's what I eat in the mornings when I'm in a hurry! =(
The oatmeal thing, does that go for the big containers of oatmeal you can buy too? Really disappointed to see that instant oatmeal is in the bad section.
the healthier selection even look yummier.
thanks for the info :)
very well written
Random props!
WOW! That's an eye opener. I mean I know processed foods will have high levels of one thing or another but I knew those 100 calorie things are too good to be true.
You're right though, everything in moderation. I'm not a calorie counting girl but I do look at what I eat & try to pick healthy choices when I can. I prefer fruit to candy anyday. Starbucks just got in this fruit & cheese plate & I actually picked that to go with my smoothie than the coffee cake I so dearly love. I hope they have more of those plates when I go back today!!
--->MiNA<3
P.S: I'm subscribing! It's so refreshing & GREAT to see a site about food & nutrition that doesnt involve thinspo, bashing curvy women or giving props to eating disorders.
my hsuband eats instant oatmeal for breakfast some mornings, because it's fast. but on days when we have time and feel like oatmeal we eat steele cut oats and i love the texture. i cook it with diced up apples or rasisins or nuts, and flavour mine with yogurt, while he eats his with maple syrup. the baby likes sour cream in hers on the days she refuses yogurt.
i've never heard of trying an egg in your oatmeal! i think i might do that some day just to see how it tastes
Nice photos of the snacks! I actually just snacked on almonds, but more than 10 for sure, I'm definitely exceeding the 100-calorie idea haha
PS Glad you enjoyed dinner on Fri!
@MagisterTom - It's just the pre-packaged instant oatmeal that is in the unhealthy section. The really big bags/containers of plain rolled oats where you usually have to cook it on the stovetop are great because you decide what to put inside your oatmeal!
@Shinbi_Belldandy - Hey there~ thanks for the feedback! I know what you're talking about at Starbucks. I've had those before too! They're really delicious! The problem is that I find them kind of pricey too. but then again... starbucks is pricey overall!
Passby ~^^
for me, an organic yogurt is more convenient in the mornings I am on the run...good to know I am doing something right in my eating habits :) interesting examples and good points.
Question: If I'm underweight and need to gain weight, does it matter whether I eat unhealthy or healthy 100-calorie snacks?
I think it's great that you're blogging about nutrition (:
I'm going to add you if that's all right =P.
@Coffee_Spit - It'd be better if you ate the healthy snacks b/c they give you more then just calories (ex: avocado has healthy fats, the peanut butter does too and it has protein as well. Yogurt also has protein and healthy bacteria). But the processed food is nothing but empty calories, sugars, and salts.
I have to second what Shinbi_Belldandy said --- it's a refreshing change! I'm really into food and nutrition and hate all the fad diets and stuff --- and am disgusted by all the anorexia and bulimia online, and especially on xanga.
My rule of thumb for healthy food is usually that if it is pretty close to what it looked like when it came out of the ground or tree or butcher shop, it's probably not only healthy but tastes good!
For people who are used to eating a lot of processed food, they really need to wean their tastebuds, then completely retrain them because everything will likely taste bland or not sweet enough. As a mom, though, the 100-calorie packs of bad snacks are good as 'treats' but we don't call them snacks. The local dietician on TV here likes to call the granola bars "cookies in disguise".
@Roadlesstaken - I hope that I don't discourage you from eating breakfast at all! Because it is the most important meal of the day! Oatmeal is still great because it's full of healthy fiber. Just watch out for that added sodium & sugar in the instant variety! :)
@i_Nutrition - nah, I gotta eat breakfast! Good way to start the day.
@Coffee_Spit - The reply from @adept_of_chaos - is absolutely right. I often emphasize that just because you are skinny, does not necessarily mean that you are healthy! Sometimes it is not so easy to foresee or plan your long-term health while you are young. A lot of processed/fast foods (eg. french fries, pizza) are high in saturated and trans fats and salt. Even if they have the same calories as healthier foods, these bad fats and salt/sodium contribute to heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc.
Good luck with getting yourself to a healthy weight! I would encourage the avocados and peanut butter since they are full of healthy fats and higher in calories.
@CanadianE - For sure, Xanga has a lot of thinspo/pro-ana, which is why I decided to start my blog here! I hope that I can produce a change in people's lives :)
I really like that phrase: "cookies in disguise"! That means I've eaten a lot of cookies in my lifetime haha
For all those people who can't seem to give-up instant oatmeal, I thought I would give some insight on some "better" instant oatmeal products that you could buy. I recently spotted a new instant oatmeal product on the market that has a much lower sodium content than the well-known "Quaker" brand. As well, it doesn't contain any artificial or natural sugars! It is the President's Choice Blue Menu Multigrain Instant Oatmeal - Cinnamon Spice. Compared to the Quaker Instant Oatmeal - Cinnamon Spice it has the same # of calories but 0g of sugar, 90mg less sodium and not to mention, 3g more fibre!
very informative! i find your posts to be amazing, i have had problems with my body image for as long as i can remember and i find you to be a real inspiration to not hate it any longer. please keep up the awesome work!!
-jessica,
Kellie Pickler has got it right when she says we are all beautiful, no matter who we are! We just have to see ourselves that way. Throw away the media and let's watch real people, because that's who we are. We are our own shining stars.
hahah we did one on portion sizes too at a health fair. it was funny to see people's reactions, but I bet they'll still go out and get a large fries and a double cheeseburger. Good job though on your presentation booth. The plates look nice.
Random fact. McDonalds increased the diameter of the straws that they use so that you'll drink more soda more quickly and will want to buy a larger size. hahaha I went and did the comparison the other day after hearing about it.
It's nice to see it all laid out so nicely like that. Great post! I will try to incorporate more healthy fresh foods in my diet instead of packaged/processed junk!