Everyone loves to indulge on certain foods. We all have that list of foods we only eat on special occasions. But isn’t it a shame that some of the best tasting foods are the worst in fat, calories, and sugar? It can be hard to avoid those guilty pleasures, especially when the nutrition information is not available. Here are some of the foods you should definitely skip that you probably didn’t know were horrible for you.
Campbell’s Condensed Soup—The average Campbell’s cup of soup has about 800mg of sodium, but what you don’t always think about is a whole can of soup is two cups, so you’re putting over 1600mg of sodium in your body when you’re having the whole can! That’s more salt than you should be consuming in your entire day. Look for soups that say Light in Sodium, and read the label before buying!
Haagen Dazs’ Dulce de Leche Low-Fat Frozen Yogurt—Sure, you see frozen yogurt and you think healthy; even the most decadent ice cream flavors tend to have less fat than regular ice cream. Unfortunately, not all frozen yogurt is created equally guilt-free. Giving this Haagen Daz fro-yo some props, it does have 15g less fat than the regular Haagen Daz Dulce de Leche flavor, but one serving of this fro-yo has 25g of sugar! Instead, reach for a brand of ice cream that has no-added-sugar options, like Edy’s; one 1/2 cup serving of Edy’s French Vanilla has only 100 calories, 14g of carbs, 3g of fat and 4g of sugar.
Dunkin’ Donuts’ Coffee Cake Muffin—Muffins are often mistaken as healthy, especially when compared to donuts. What most people don’t know is that muffins are surprisingly high in fat. This Coffee Cake Muffin is extra surprising; you would need to eat three Dunkin’ Donuts Glazed Donuts to match the contents of this muffin. In one Coffee Cake Muffin, there are 620 calories, 54g of sugar, 25g of fat, 7g of saturated fat, and 93g of carbs. If you need to start your day with something sweet, an alternative could be one glazed donut; Dunkin’s Glazed Donuts have 220 calories, 31g carbs, 9g fat, and 12g sugar. But this is only on a special occasion!
Ruffles’ Cheddar & Sour Cream Flavored Potato Chip—There’s a reason these potato chips taste so good; in just one serving, these chips have 17% of the upper limit of daily fat. Even though the calorie count is on the lower side, chances are you’ll be eating more than one serving. In the 1-ounce serving size, there are 160 calories, 230mg of sodium and 11g of fat. In a larger serving size, there are 240 calories, 345mg of sodium, and 16.5g of fat. As an alternative, try Baked Ruffles in the original flavor for less fat and sodium.
VitaminWater—This popular beverage company uses the trick where the nutrition label is based on one serving size while the bottle contains multiple serving sizes, leaving you to do the math (which we never do!) Each bottle of VitaminWater contains 2.5 servings of the sugary-sweet water, and the whole bottle has 33g of sugar (a can of Coke has 39g of sugar, only 6g more!). Try VitaminWater Zero with 0 calories and no sugar.
Starbucks’ Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino with whipped cream—Right away this doesn’t sound like the healthiest option. But how bad is it? This Frappuccino is often an afternoon pick-me-up, but unfortunately it delivers about 1/3 of the maximum fat you should consume in a single day, as well as over 1/2 of your daily saturated fat. In one Grande, there are 510 calories, 59g of sugar, 19g of fat, 11g of saturated fat, and 300mg of sodium. So, what do you get instead? Your best bet is to stick with a cup of regular coffee. If you can’t end your relationship with Frappuccinos just yet, try to get a Light Coffee Frap; with only 130 calories, 16g of sugar and 0.5g of fat. This light alternative is definitely worth the occasional splurge.
Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts Brown Sugar Cinnamon—Pop-Tarts will always hold a special place in our hearts. The nutritional info on the Pop-Tart box is only for one serving, but one serving is only one pastry, and we often mistake one serving for two pastries. Therefore, you end up eating two servings! And c’mon, it’s impossible to only eat one of the two Pop-Tarts, especially when the package cannot be resealed. If you eat both Pop-Tarts, this tasty yet tricky breakfast gives you 1/4 of your daily fat intake and more than 1/2 of your added daily sugar. In two Pop-Tart pastries, there are 420 calories, 26g of sugar, 16g of fat and 66g of carbs. Instead, your best bet is to eat just one pastry. Or, you can try Fiber One’s Brown Sugar Cinnamon Toaster Pastry, which has 190 calories, 16g of sugar, 5g of fiber, 4g of fat and 36g of carbs.
PowerBar Performance Energy Cookies & Cream—PowerBars often look and taste like candy bars, but we are tricked into thinking they are healthy! The Cookies & Cream PowerBar has only 1g of fiber and almost 3/4 of your daily added-sugar intake. In one bar, there are 240 calories, 45g of carbs, 26g of sugar and 8g of protein. Try a bar from PowerBar’s Harvest line instead—they’re made with whole grains! One Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bar still has 250 calories and 43g of carbs, but has 22g of sugar and still offers 10g of protein as well as 5g of fiber.
There is a healthier option to everything unhealthy. Instead of chowing down on that Coffee Cake Muffin, Frappuccino, VitaminWater or Haagen Daz fro-yo, search for some healthier options. Of course, it isn’t always easy to say no! Try to skip on these foods as often as possible; you’ll be thanking yourself later!