BAR HUMBUG!
Beware those ‘organic, vegan, raw, healthy’ snacks – they can contain as much sugar as toffee and some are as ‘natural’ as a Jammie Dodger
THERE’S a new generation of healthy sounding snack bars on the shelves, listing their impressive organic credentials. They also claim to give you fuel for intense gym workouts, or promise to be a wholesome snack for busy commuters, children and those on the go. But are they really as good for you as they claim to be? Here, nutritionist ZOE HARCOMBE gives her verdict..
NAKD BERRY DELIGHT, 99p hollandandbarrett.com They say: ‘ Gluten, wheat and dairy-free. One of your five a day.’
Ingredients: Dates, cashews, raisins and dried raspberries. Calories per 35g bar: 135 Overall fat: 5.2g Sugar: 16.6g Protein: 3g
ZOE SAYS: ‘This is massively high in sugar, which comes from the three dried fruits. Dates are staggeringly high in sugar at 66 per cent. Not even toffee has that much!’
THE PRIMAL PANTRY APPLE AND PECAN RAW PALEO BAR, £1.59 perfectlypaleo.co.uk They say: ‘Grain-free – the UK’s first paleo bar. Ideal for fuelling a workout and wholesome for kids too. Six real food ingredients.’
Ingredients: Dates, almonds, apple, pecans, cinnamon and almond oil. Calories per 45g bar: 199
Overall fat: 11g Sugar: 16.9g Protein: 4.2g
ZOE SAYS: ‘This might be grain-free, but it’s not a paleo bar. Cavemen or women did not have daily access to dried fruit and would not have consumed any nuts in their natural form. Paleo diet followers consume mostly meat, fish, eggs and vegetables. They won’t fall for this and non-paleo followers shouldn’t either.’ ORGANIC FOOD BAR ACTIVE GREENS CHOCOLATE, £1.99 realfoods.co.uk They say: ‘ 80 per cent raw.’
Ingredients: Almonds, date paste, agave syrup, brown rice protein, dark chocolate chips, cane juice, chocolate paste, cocoa butter, flax sprouts, quinoa sprouts, wheatgrass juice powder, barley grass juice powder, sesame seeds, spirulina, blueberry powder, raspberry powder, broccoli sprouts, beet juice powder, carrot juice powder. Calories per 70g bar: 320 Overall fat: 15g Sugar: 27g Protein: 13g
ZOE SAYS: ‘The whopping 27g of sugar is more than the World Health Organisation’s latest recommended limit of 25g a day. Don’t be fooled by the misleading descriptions. I would need to walk for about two hours to work off the calories from this bar.’
9BAR BREAKFAST APRICOT & STRAWBERRY, 89p ocado.com
They say: ‘Deliciously moist and chewy wholefood morning energy bar. Source of calcium and protein.’
Ingredients: Mixed seeds (sunflower, sesame, hemp), rice syrup, agave nectar syrup, soya protein crispies, gluten-free oats, dried apricots, crisped rice, vegetable oils, cashews, raw cane sugar, soya flour, freeze-dried strawberries, dicalcium phosphate, natural flavourings, citric acid, salt. Calories per 50g bar: 226 Overall fat: 11g Sugar: 15g Protein: 9g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Raw cane sugar is just sugar. Syrup is sugar. This is a very common tactic in the fake “health” food industry. They try to make junk sound natural. It’s as artificial as a Jammie Dodger. This also includes extra nasties such as vegetable oils which are implicated in inflammation.’
RUDE HEALTH THE PUMPKIN, 99p rudehealth.com They say: ‘ A bite-sized pumpkin pie. No refined sugars. Gluten-free. Dairy-free.’
Ingredients: Dates, cashews, pumpkin seeds, apples, cinnamon and ginger. Calories per 35g bar: 137
Overall fat: 6.8g Sugar: 14.6g Protein: 3.3g
ZOE SAYS: ‘This is possibly the best of a bad bunch. However, the dates are delivering the sugar and the good nutrients are coming from the nuts and seeds, so just have a handful of nuts and seeds instead. You could get quite a few nuts and seeds for the price of one of these tiny bars.’
RAW HEALTH TRULY JUICY BAR, APRICOT AND ALMOND, £1.75 planetorganic.com They say: ‘Organic apricots, almonds and nuts are all squeezed into this mouth-watering bar. Raw. Organic. Vegan. Gluten-free.’
Ingredients: Dates, apricots, brazil nuts, almonds and apples. Calories per 46g bar: 186
Overall fat: 10.6g Sugar: 17.5g Protein: 4.1g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Dates again – that’s because they are moreishly sweet, being mostly sugar. This time dried apricots are added to make the product even sweeter. That’s why this has 70 per cent of the maximum WHO sugar guideline in one gone-ina-minute bar. You couldn’t eat ten real apricots, but you could easily eat ten dried apricots – that’s why dried fruit is such a dangerous source of sugar.’
PULSIN ORANGE CHOC CHIP PROTEIN SNACK, £1.58 proteinpickandmix.co.uk
They say: ‘ Natural and high in protein. 12g protein, low GI/GL. Vegan, dairyfree, gluten-free, soya-free, non-GM.’
Ingredients: Almonds, rice protein,
brown rice malt, chocolate chips, pea protein, chicory fibre, xylitol, concentrated fruit juice (apple, grape, pear), cocoa butter, raw cocoa, rice starch, orange oil, green tea extract, sea salt. Calories per 50g bar: 321
Overall fat: 12.1g Sugar: 5.8g Protein: 12.6g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Crikey – another tiny bar that would take me two hours to walk off the calories. This one is lower in sugar. However, the protein is extracted (rice, pea) rather than naturally occurring, making the bar unnaturally high in protein, which is not healthy. Don’t let your dog near this one – xylitol can be toxic to our canine friends, even in small quantities.’
TREK BANANA BREAD PROTEIN FLAPJACK, £1.05 nutricentre.com
They say: ‘Protein-packed. Gluten wheat and dairy-free. 100 per cent proper good food. Naturally vegan.’
Ingredients: Gluten-free oats, rice syrup, soya protein crunchies, vegetable oils (palm, sunflower, coconut, rapeseed,) dried banana pieces, soya flour, raw cane sugar, natural flavourings, salt. Calories per 50g bar: 208 Overall fat: 9.5g Sugar: 12.3g
Protein: 10.2g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Grrrrr… there’s that sugar again, plus the dreaded vegetable oil. Not one of these ingredients would be found in this form in a field or on a tree and yet the makers claim this is “proper good food”.’
CLIF BAR BLUEBERRY CRISP, £1.25 dolphinfitness.co.uk
They say: ‘Oat and blueberry energy bar. Named after my father, Clifford, my childhood hero and companion throughout the Sierra Nevada mountains – Gary, founder and owner.’
Ingredients: Organic brown rice syrup, ClifPro® (soy rice crisps [soy protein isolate, rice flour, barley malt extract], organic roasted soybeans, organic soy flour), organic rolled oats, blueberry fruit pieces, concentrated apple puree, glucose syrup, oat fibre, pectin, elderberry juice concentrate, citric acid, concentrated blueberry puree, natural flavour, organic almonds, ClifCrunch® (organic oat fibre, inulin [chicory extract], organic milled flaxseed, organic oat bran, organic psyllium), organic cane syrup, blueberries (blueberries, apple juice concentrate), organic date paste, almond butter, organic sunflower
oil, sea salt, citric acid. Calories per 65g bar: 247 Overall fat: 5g Sugars: 21g Protein: 10g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Is the personal bit supposed to make up for the sheer number of ingredients? Organic is mentioned 12 times and is virtually meaningless in this context. Organic cane syrup is still sugar. All juice concentrates and purees are sugar, as is rice syrup and glucose syrup. There are plenty of soya derivatives here, too. It’s also a bit of a stretch to call it a blueberry bar, as blueberry puree is one of the parts of one ingredient and comes quite a way down the list – ingredients are in order of amount from highest to lowest.’
EAT NATURAL CRUNCHY NUT BAR, 99p hollandandbarrett.com
They say: ‘ Protein-packed with peanuts and chocolate. Contains more protein than any other Eat Natural bar.’
Ingredients: Peanuts, glucose syrup, dark chocolate, dextrose, emulsifier, soya protein crispies, shredded coconut, honey, crisped rice, cocoa powder, salt. Calories per 45g bar: 215
Overall fat: 13.3g Sugar: 9.8g Protein: 10g
ZOE SAYS: ‘Glucose syrup is sugar, dextrose is sugar, honey is sugar, and dark chocolate contains sugar. If this were presented honestly, sugar would likely be the number one ingredient. Just have a small bag of peanuts, or a bar of high cocoa content chocolate (85 per cent or higher), or a small tub of fresh coconut instead.’