DIET REPORTS AND ARTICLES

Is Your Health Food Really Healthy?

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Salad to go

6 healthy-sounding foods that really aren’t.

By Rachel Johnson, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.D. EatingWell May/June 2008

My friend’s husband, Henry, recently bought a huge box of Yogos, confident that these “yogurty-covered, fruit-flavored bits” were a healthy choice for his kids.

“Not exactly,” his wife, a nutritionist, said when he presented her with the box. Sure, Yogos are fortified with 100 percent of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C and some calcium. But the ingredient list begins with sugar and partially hydrogenated oils, and a small pouch (just shy of an ounce) of the pea-sized candies supplies 90 calories, two-thirds of which come from sugars. In fact, Yogos contain very little yogurt or fruit. How did this smart man get fooled into thinking this was health food?

No doubt Henry was deceived by what Brian Wansink, Ph.D., executive director of the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion and an EatingWell Advisory Board member, calls the “health halo” effect. Words like “yogurt” and “fruit” positively glow with such halos, since we consider these foods healthy in their natural state.

In his “McSubway” studies, reported last October in the Journal of Consumer Research, Wansink showed how we let our general impressions of foods mislead us. He asked people who had finished eating at McDonald’s or Subway to estimate the calories in their meals, then compared their guesses to the actual counts. Participants estimated that a Subway meal contained 21 percent fewer calories than a McDonald’s meal with the same calories. Wansink concluded that Subway’s “healthier than fast food” image was biasing customers’ calorie estimations. Today, his advice is, “Take your best estimate of how many calories you think the food contains, and double it!”

Don’t be fooled by health halos. See some of the worst offenders

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USER COMMENTS — Add Your Comment

It would of been nice if you would of put a little more positive info in your articals. I make my own smoothies of DHA Soy Milk and frozen berries, always a banana (adds the perfect amount of sweetness) and one scoop of GNCs vitamin powder (buy putting it in a smoothie you get rid of that nasty chalkyness) seems pretty healthy to me.

Loretta, Columbus, OH

There's some good information in this feature, but I think it went a little overboard when saying you might as well go for a Snickers bar over some energy bars. As long as you check the ingredients of the bars, there should be no problem. If it's a good one, then all the calories are coming from nuts, grains, good fats, and the sugars are often natural and have a low glycemic index. Compared to a Snickers full of refined sugars and unhealthy fats, I'd say it's quite a stretch to compare the two.

Adam, Cleveland, OH

While I hear what Loretta is saying (what's so bad about having sushi once in a while), I have to admit I was horrified the other day when my husband fed our 2 year old a Yoplait yogurt...23 grams of sugar! He said, "I thought Yoplait was healthy," I then read him the ingredients which included high-fructose corn syrup, as well as sugar! I thank you for writing this article, because until we're educated, we just don't know for sure! For example, I love sushi and had no idea that the avocado/eel roll (which I indulge in regularly) was that bad for me... guess I'll just stick to pieces of sushi and skip the rolls.

Betty, Seattle, WA

I would love to see the fiber added to your recipes as I'm trying to eat more fiber. Would that be possible?

Shirley Colley, Groveland, CA

You are a little over the top on this. Luna Bars, which you pictured with the "Bad" snacks are what tides me over on long days. As far as I am concerned the 180 calories in a Luna Bar is well worth it. And, yes, I am careful about what I eat and do maintain a normal weight.

Chris, Green Bay, WI

Thanks I thought this was very helpful and not at all negative.

Claire, New York, NY

Fage non-fat Greek yogurt has fewer calories than the Oikos non-fat Greek yogurt. In this article, the Oikos non-fat yogurt was compared to Fage's full fat yogurt; when it should have been compared to a yogurt with a similar fat content. For clarification, the Fage non-fat yogurt has 80 calories, 0g fat per cup and the Oikos yogurt has 110 calories, 0g fat per cup. Fage is a better choice for those watching calories.

Michelle, San Mateo, CA

I dont think that you are really thinking this all through. I am a firm believer that eating healthy and exercising daily will allow you to live a longer life. However in order to have energy throughout the day, you need calories. Calories are energy, you can not survive without calorie intake. Your article seemed to focus on the calorie count rather than the fact that an energy bar has 10-15 g of protein and 5+ grams of fiber. I dont think a snickers bar has that. And all fat is not a bad thing. Take an avocado for example, 21 grams of fat, however it is one of the most healthy foods you can eat. Before you decide on what to eat, take in all the nutrition facts and remember that not all fat is bad and calories are a necessity.

Claire, Atlanta, GA