Instagram has really opened my eyes to just how many people love their bars. I can’t go a day without seeing numerous people posting pictures of their bar of choice, and quite honestly it makes me want to scream. Somehow food manufacturers have duped a portion of the “health food” community into consuming these less then ideal products, all while believing they are doing something really good for their body. Right now, I’m going to set the record straight about these products, and why you might want to rethink consuming them.
The Protein Problem
First, I should mention Americans love over consuming protein. While it is essential to our bodies, and helps people loose fat and gain muscle, it isn’t a replacement for eating fresh fruits and vegetables. Sometimes I feel people are so protein focused, they forget that not every source of protein is created equal. A good portion of protein and meal replacement bars are made from soy protein isolate, a highly refined soy byproduct that is likely GMO and has been stripped of any good health benefits. Essentially they take everything good about soy away and leave you with just the protein, hence the name soy protein isolate. This doesn’t sound so bad, however nothing that is highly processed is a good thing. It is like comparing an organic grass-fed strip steak to a McDonald’s hamburger. There is a huge difference in how our body’s process these two vastly different products. If you are choosing to go the protein bar route, eliminate any bars using this unhealthy protein.
The Sugar Problem
I have no idea why, but consumers have decided everything should be dessert-like, including their protein and meal replacement bars. Think of it this way, if your bar wasn’t loaded with sugar and called “cookie dough” would you be as inclined to purchase it? What if it was called broccoli casserole? And more importantly, why is your snack or meal dessert based? This is one of the biggest problems with these products, the amount of added sugars in them. Companies have started going the organic route, but even evaporated cane juice and organic sugars are added sugars. Sure, they aren’t as bad as their refined counterparts but added sugar is still sugar that doesn’t need to be there. There are ways to get protein without added 3-4 teaspoons of sugar on top of it, which is exactly what we do when we consume these products.
The “Fake Stuff” Problem
Not only do these products contain a ton of added sugars, some of them contain FAKE sugars. You see, diet companies don’t want to add calories to these bars because they have to give you the illusion you are consuming something healthy. For this reason they use sucralose (aka fake sugar) instead of real sugar to make your bar dessert-like without adding calories. On top of the sucralose, they have to add fake flavors to make your highly refined soy treat taste like something. Soy and whey don’t typically taste like cookie dough or brownies so this illusion has to come from somewhere, and unfortunately most of the time we don’t even know what they use to flavor these products because the flavorings are listed as “natural” flavors or “artificial” flavors. Not only do they have to artificially flavor your bar, they also have to color it. I’ve seen artificial food dyes and caramel coloring in a majority of these bars. Again, its all an illusion.
The Problems With These Popular Brands
To make this really simple here is a quick cheat sheet of brands with a list of questionable ingredients
1. Muscle Milk– Contains soy protein isolate as well as a few other forms of soy. Likely GMO, also has mono and diglycerides which is a potential hidden source of trans fats.
2. Special K Protein Bars- This is one of the worst offenders! Contains trans fats listed as the first ingredient, controversial preservative polysorbate 60, preservative TBHQ, another form of trans fat, highly refined cottonseed and canola oils, a ton of soy byproducts, and lastly refined sugars. Do yourself a favor and stay away from any of the garbage Special K makes!
3. Nature’s Valley Protein Bars– Contains soy protein isolate, highly refined canola oil, soy lecithin, and “natural flavors”. Also likely GMO.
4. Quest Protein Bars- While these aren’t quite as bad as the others, they still contain sucralose aka fake sugars which should be avoided at all costs. They also contain “natural flavors”.
5. Think Thin Bars- I might hate these the most because they are putting the word thin on their package. They contain soy protein isolate, malitol (fake sugars), and “Natural Flavors”.
6. Clif Energy Bars- While Clif’s ingredient list is HUGE, they do use some organic ingredients. However, the FIRST ingredient in their white chocolate macadamia nut bar is SUGAR! There is also one ingredient they are using that is NOT organic, and that is the soy protein isolate. GMO much Clif? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Do not fool yourself into this illusion, these bars are nothing more then a dessert.
7. Clif Builder’s Bars- Same thing as their energy bars, one of the only non-organic ingredients is soy protein isolate. They are also using “natural flavors” and a ton of sugar.
8. Powerbar– Uses soy protein isolate, malitol (fake sugars), highly refined canola oil, and “natural flavors”. Also likely GMO.
9. MET- Rx Big 100 Meal Replacement Bar- Not using soy protein isolate, however they are using high fructose corn syrup, regular corn syrup, “natural flavors”, a few other forms of sugar, and highly refined and likely GMO canola oil.
10. Simply Protein Bar- soy protein isolate
11. Luna Bar– soy protein isolate, “natural flavors”, loaded with added sugars
12. Pro-Bar Meal- this bar claims to be the “real food” answer to meal replacement bars. While it does have some good ingredients, the FIRST ingredient is added sugars! One bar contains 17 grams of sugar, that’s over 4 teaspoons a bar!!
13. Slim Fat Meal Replacement Bar- This one rates up there with the Special K Bar. I don’t know what isn’t in this thing! It contains soy protein isolate, sulfites, corn syrup, “natural and artificial flavors”, caramel color, real sugar, fake sugar, and tons of really long unknown ingredients. RUN AWAY FROM THIS!!!!
14. Skinny Girl Protein Bars- I have to say, I’ve been wanting to rip this product apart for a long time. Bethanny loved to promote “health” stuff all over her show, but it was obvious she had no idea what she was talking about. I did like her show, but when it came to the food portion she was just lost. Funny because she chooses to put the word “skinny” on a product that is horrible for you. Remember, you might be skinny on the outside, but are you healthy on the inside? This product contains soy protein isolate, soy, “natural flavors” and is likely GMO.
15. Kind Bars- The only thing I can find here is the soy lecithin is likely GMO. They specifically label another ingredient as Non-GMO but do not say their soy lecithin is Non-GMO, which can only mean one thing… its GMO. These do have added sugar but the main source of added sugar is honey which is less refined then some others.
Alternatives
Here’s the thing… we need to stop relying on processed bars and start relying on real food to meet our nutritional goals. With the exception of maybe the Kind Bars, I would not rate any of these as real food, or “healthy” options. Meals aren’t supposed to be refined soy disguised as a dessert, but somehow this is where our food supply has lead us. If you’ve regularly been consuming these products I would recommend replacing them with other protein rich options. Here are a few protein rich ideas:
- Raw nuts and seeds
- Plain Greek Yogurt with raw honey
- Hard boiled eggs
- Beans, bean dips (hummus, white bean dip)
- Shredded Chicken (Roast a whole chicken, pull the meat, and store in refrigerator for quick use)
- Nut Butters
- Spinach
- Broccoli
- Milk
Choose one of these options and add fresh fruits and veggies for a healthy meal or snack that isn’t just an illusion!
