Granola Bars: Healthy Snack or Sugar-Filled Squares?

Sponsored by:

Granola bars.

Quick, satisfying, and as tasty as Grandma’s delicious sticky buns.

Make your own! Photo courtesy John Reid.

Unfortunately, they’re usually just as bad for you. Oh sure, they may have “Health Checks” and they may claim to be “Full of Fibre!” but the truth is that the majority of packaged granola bars are nothing but glorified cookies.

Let’s take, for example, the ever-popular Nature Valley granola bars. I have to single out Nature Valley because they do such a good job of promoting their products as being made of “wholesome, delicious ingredients.” They also insist their bars are “all-natural” and “heart-healthy.”

Are They Right?

Well, if you take a look at the Nature Valley Sweet & Salty Peanut flavour you’d see that, of the first five ingredients, three are sugar (aka glucose, fructose, cane syrup etc.) That’s important because ingredients are listed in descending order, according to theirweight. Essentially, you’re paying almost six dollars for what amounts to sugar-covered peanuts! Heart-healthy? Not likely. And I’d like to ask Nature Valley what exactly is all-natural about extracting sugar from corn and molding it into a rectangle.

That’s not to say Nature Valley is the only one doing it. Slim-Fast, the weight loss giant, markets granola bars that are even worse! They’re made up of sugars, artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils, artificial colours…the list goes on.

In response to all this false advertising, and in an effort to help those people who are consistently in a hurry, I have compiled a list of quick and healthy granola bar options to replace the blood-sugar spiking bars you may or may not have in your cupboard right now (*wink *wink). Enjoy!

1. Make Your Own!

It’s this simple:

Directions:

-Beat oil and honey

-Add remaining ingredients

-Pack down into cookie sheet and bake @ 350° C for 15 minutes

-Let cool and break into pieces

2. Kashi Peanut Peanut Butter Granola Bar

Seven grams of protein and healthy, non-processed ingredients make for a filling, delicious and healthy granola bar. Kashi is the only brand of healthy granola bar readily available in nearly all grocery stores.

3. Clif Crunch Peanut Butter Bars

These little morsels truly are all-natural. While they do contain a little more cane sugar than is ideal, they still contain a good balance of proteins and healthy fats that are going to keep you feeling satisfied longer.

John Reid

John Reid is a University of Calgary Faculty of Kinesiology graduate and Precision Nutrition Certified Sports Nutritionist. When he’s not rowing for the Calgary Row Club you’ll find him enjoying every possible second in the mountains hiking, trail running and road cycling.

Outside of sports, John is involved with the Branch Out Neurological Foundation, a local non-profit charitable organization dedicated to fundraising for new and alternative forms of treatment for neurological disorders.