Gluten-free items
These wheat-free products may be hot, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re better for you, says registered dietitian nutritionist Karen Ansel M.S., coauthor of The Calendar Diet: A Month by Month Guide to Losing Weight While Living Your Life. Since gluten adds texture and taste to many foods, manufacturers often have to replace it with sugar, fat, and starch, which can pack more calories than the original gluten version would. If you want to limit your intake, you’re better off choosing naturally gluten-free whole foods like buckwheat, veggies, and sweet potatoes, says nutrition therapist and registered dietitian Limor Baum.
Wraps
For those cutting carbs, these flat offenders seem like the perfect sandwich solution—but not so fast. Not only do most wraps contain more than 300 calories before adding the fillings (you could have three slices of bread for less than that!), they’re also large—many restaurants serve 12-inch ones—making it easier to stuff them with more ingredients than you would put in a classic sandwich. Registered dietitian Amy Shapiro also points out that it is easy to remove the top slice of bread and eat a sandwich open-faced, but who rips off part of a wrap? “Even spinach, tomato, and whole-wheat wraps rarely contain any whole grains or vegetables, though they do contain fat,” she says.
Trail mix and granola
Though once considered a healthy snack (what else were you supposed to eat during long family car rides?), most granolas and trail mixes are now made with a long list of diet foes such as added sugars, trans fats, and partially-hydrogenated oils. Plus, unlike cereal, for which the serving size is usually one cup, the nutrition information listed corresponds to ¼ cup of granola, says registered dietitian Laura Cipullo. “Most people eat up to three times that in one sitting,” she explains. “But since a lot of trail mixes and granolas are made with high-calorie ingredients like maple syrup, honey, nuts, and dried fruits, that can add up to 100 calories.” Use a small handful as a guide to make sure you don’t overdo it.
Bran muffins
Though bran is a high-fiber and nutrient-rich carbohydrate, the amount in most bran muffins—a mere 10 percent, according to Shapiro—doesn’t make up for its overall cake-like ingredient list of white flour, oil, butter, eggs, milk, and sugar. And many muffins don’t even contain the bran or pumpernickel they promise, using food coloring instead. “Muffins, bran or not, have 300 to 500 calories each, so you’re better off just choosing the kind you like rather than opting for a ‘healthier’ option that won’t satisfy you,” says Cipullo. “If a more whole-grain breakfast is what you’re after, try a sprouted-grain English muffin, which has only about 160 calories and 6 grams of fat, plus 8 grams of filling protein,” suggests Ansel.
Caesar salad
While getting a salad is usually a virtuous move, Caesars tend to do more harm than good. “An entrée-size salad with shaved cheese and Caesar dressing (ingredients are cheese, eggs, oil, and salty anchovies) contains almost half of your daily fat needs and makes up a third of your daily calorie intake,” says Baum. And most are made with romaine, one of the least nutritious greens there is. If a Caesar salad seems like the best menu option available, or if you’re seriously craving one, ask for the dressing on the side, drizzle on just 2 tablespoons, and add grilled chicken or shrimp to better balance out your meal.
Fat-free salad dressings
“When asked about fat-free dressings, I always tell my clients that it is better to use the real thing, just less of it,” says Shapiro, who suggests aiming for about 1 to 2 tablespoons. “Research shows that when you eat fat-free foods, you also eat bigger portions. And when removing fat, manufacturers add extra sugar in order to preserve the taste.” “Furthermore, your body needs fat in order to absorb many of the fat-soluble nutrients in salad, such as lycopene from tomatoes, beta carotene from carrots, and vitamin K in leafy greens,” explains Ansel. Full-fat dressing will help you feel fuller for longer, as well as maximize the nutrition from your salad bowl.
These wheat-free products may be hot, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re better for you, says registered dietitian nutritionist Karen Ansel M.S., coauthor of The Calendar Diet: A Month by Month Guide to Losing Weight While Living Your Life. Since gluten adds texture and taste to many foods, manufacturers often have to replace it with sugar, fat, and starch, which can pack more calories than the original gluten version would. If you want to limit your intake, you’re better off choosing naturally gluten-free whole foods like buckwheat, veggies, and sweet potatoes, says nutrition therapist and registered dietitian Limor Baum.
Wraps
For those cutting carbs, these flat offenders seem like the perfect sandwich solution—but not so fast. Not only do most wraps contain more than 300 calories before adding the fillings (you could have three slices of bread for less than that!), they’re also large—many restaurants serve 12-inch ones—making it easier to stuff them with more ingredients than you would put in a classic sandwich. Registered dietitian Amy Shapiro also points out that it is easy to remove the top slice of bread and eat a sandwich open-faced, but who rips off part of a wrap? “Even spinach, tomato, and whole-wheat wraps rarely contain any whole grains or vegetables, though they do contain fat,” she says.
Trail mix and granola
Though once considered a healthy snack (what else were you supposed to eat during long family car rides?), most granolas and trail mixes are now made with a long list of diet foes such as added sugars, trans fats, and partially-hydrogenated oils. Plus, unlike cereal, for which the serving size is usually one cup, the nutrition information listed corresponds to ¼ cup of granola, says registered dietitian Laura Cipullo. “Most people eat up to three times that in one sitting,” she explains. “But since a lot of trail mixes and granolas are made with high-calorie ingredients like maple syrup, honey, nuts, and dried fruits, that can add up to 100 calories.” Use a small handful as a guide to make sure you don’t overdo it.
Bran muffins
Though bran is a high-fiber and nutrient-rich carbohydrate, the amount in most bran muffins—a mere 10 percent, according to Shapiro—doesn’t make up for its overall cake-like ingredient list of white flour, oil, butter, eggs, milk, and sugar. And many muffins don’t even contain the bran or pumpernickel they promise, using food coloring instead. “Muffins, bran or not, have 300 to 500 calories each, so you’re better off just choosing the kind you like rather than opting for a ‘healthier’ option that won’t satisfy you,” says Cipullo. “If a more whole-grain breakfast is what you’re after, try a sprouted-grain English muffin, which has only about 160 calories and 6 grams of fat, plus 8 grams of filling protein,” suggests Ansel.
Caesar salad
While getting a salad is usually a virtuous move, Caesars tend to do more harm than good. “An entrée-size salad with shaved cheese and Caesar dressing (ingredients are cheese, eggs, oil, and salty anchovies) contains almost half of your daily fat needs and makes up a third of your daily calorie intake,” says Baum. And most are made with romaine, one of the least nutritious greens there is. If a Caesar salad seems like the best menu option available, or if you’re seriously craving one, ask for the dressing on the side, drizzle on just 2 tablespoons, and add grilled chicken or shrimp to better balance out your meal.
Fat-free salad dressings
“When asked about fat-free dressings, I always tell my clients that it is better to use the real thing, just less of it,” says Shapiro, who suggests aiming for about 1 to 2 tablespoons. “Research shows that when you eat fat-free foods, you also eat bigger portions. And when removing fat, manufacturers add extra sugar in order to preserve the taste.” “Furthermore, your body needs fat in order to absorb many of the fat-soluble nutrients in salad, such as lycopene from tomatoes, beta carotene from carrots, and vitamin K in leafy greens,” explains Ansel. Full-fat dressing will help you feel fuller for longer, as well as maximize the nutrition from your salad bowl.
Veggie chips
Don’t fall for their colorful and vegetable-like appearance—veggie chips really aren’t much better for you than regular old potato chips. That’s because most are coated in oil and salt and stripped of the majority of their nutritional value throughout the cooking process, says Baum. “One serving of veggie chips is almost nutritionally equivalent to potato chips—you get the same amount of calories and sodium with maybe only 1 or 2 fewer grams of fat,” says Shapiro. So if you want veggies, eat the real thing, and if it’s chips you’re after, just have a small serving of them.
Energy bars
These may seem like the answer to that dreaded 4 p.m. hunger-induced weariness, but it’s worth your while to be selective. “Energy bars provide energy through calories just like any other food,” says Cipullo. “They don’t necessarily give you a different or better energy boost than a balanced meal would.” But since you likely eat them because they're convenient when on the go, be sure to check the ingredients list and avoid bars with a double serving size in a single bar or lots of added sugars or fiber. Cipullo suggests Kind bars, Lara bars, Rise Breakfast bars, and Organic Food bars as great, nutrient-dense options.
Yogurt-covered pretzels
All snacks exist on a spectrum, and though yogurt-covered pretzels are better than, say, French fries, these nibbles should be treated with caution. Yogurt and yogurt coating are two very different foods—whereas traditional yogurt is full of calcium, yogurt coating is made of saturated fat, cane syrup, partially-hydrogenated palm oil, milk powder, and preservatives, says Cipullo. To avoid consuming a ton of white flour and sugar, Shapiro suggests D.I.Y.-ing your own version of the treat by dipping whole-wheat pretzels in Greek yogurt.
Yogurt-covered pretzels
All snacks exist on a spectrum, and though yogurt-covered pretzels are better than, say, French fries, these nibbles should be treated with caution. Yogurt and yogurt coating are two very different foods—whereas traditional yogurt is full of calcium, yogurt coating is made of saturated fat, cane syrup, partially-hydrogenated palm oil, milk powder, and preservatives, says Cipullo. To avoid consuming a ton of white flour and sugar, Shapiro suggests D.I.Y.-ing your own version of the treat by dipping whole-wheat pretzels in Greek yogurt.
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