Organic snack bars are full of processed ingredients (Is there a healthy snack bar brand?)
My daughter saw this box of Chocolate Drizzled Made Good bars and got so excited. But look at the ingredients…
NATURAL FLAVOR: Proprietary mixture invented to make food taste irresistible so that you keep coming back for more. Preservatives, emulsifiers, solvents and other additives can make up 80% of the formulation (such as: sodium benzoate, glycerin, potassium sorbate, and propylene glycol). None of these ingredients are labeled, so we are in the dark about what flavors actually contain. (1)
ORGANIC INVERT CANE SYRUP: A thick, sweet syrupy liquid that’s processed by splitting the fructose and glucose molecules in sugar. It’s a refined sugar made in a lab and not what I’d consider a natural sweetener. (2)
ORGANIC VEGETABLE GLYCERIN: Another heavily processed sweet syrup made in a lab. To make it, vegetable oils are processed under pressure (typically with lye–a caustic chemical) to separate the glycerin from the fats. Since it’s a sugar alcohol, you eat too much of it you could get gas and diarrhea. (3)
MALTODEXTRIN: Heavily processed powder, often made from GMO corn. Linked to increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease, autoimmune conditions, gastrointestinal issues (gas and diarrhea). (4)
Do you have “natural flavors” and “maltodextrin” in your kitchen? Ugh…nope!
Clif Kid Z Bars
I used to love Z Bars because they’re organic. They say they’re “crafted for active kids” and contain “None of the No-No’s” like high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors, or GMO ingredients. So, does that mean their ingredients are healthy?
Well, look at that!
They may not use “Artificial Flavors”…but they still use NATURAL FLAVORS which are practically the SAME THING! (1)
The only difference between the two is that Natural Flavors are derived from natural substances (which can be literally anything ranging from tree bark to beaver anal glands), and Artificial Flavors are derived from synthetic substances. They are both made in a lab, contain proprietary additives, and are designed by teams of flavor scientists to give food an irresistible taste. Flavors are not real food, and not something that I want to eat (or give to my kids!)
Plus, these Z Bars contain several refined sugars along with SOYBEAN OIL. Even if it’s organic, this unhealthy oil is too high in omega-6 fatty acids and increases the risk of obesity, inflammation, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases. (5)
I wouldn’t buy Z Bars now, and these aren’t ingredients I have in my kitchen. Moving on…
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