Not-So-Healthy Health Food: Granola

MSNBC has a great article online right now about seven foods that may seem healthy, but actually are not. One in particular, granola bars, made me think: Do people really still consider granola as healthy?

I personally love granola, and would eat it all day if I could. But the fact is, it’s loaded with fat, sugar, and empty calories (almost 600 for a cup of the stuff!). Here’s the breakdown for a cup of granola (a half cup is the normal serving size, but who ever eats a half cup of cereal?).

Calories: 598
Fat – 29.7 g
Sat. fat – 5.5 g
Net Carbs – 54.6 g
Sugar – 24.5 g
Protein – 18 g

So you’ve just had a breakfast (not including milk) with the carbs of an entire sub sandwich and 6 teaspoons of pure sugar (not to mention an unhealthy level of saturated fat – especially for something with so many carbs).

A good substitute for granola is oatmeal. It’s got the same oaty, chewy consistency, a great taste, and is low in calories and sugar and high in fiber, so it will fill you up. Add a little fruit, milk and Splenda and you’ve got yourself a nutritious breakfast

Claire

(image from Kingsleighinn.com)