By Sarah Burns on January 19, 2010 in
Once reserved for fitness fanatics, today's energy bars appeal to a much broader audience -- and they taste better, too. Gone are the cardboard-stiff, bland-tasting products of years past. Instead, today's energy bars are chocked full of exotic ingredients and formulated to fit a variety of consumer needs. Offerings now run the gamut from high-protein and super-fortified to low-cal, organic or whole food energy bars.
Contrary to popular belief, the FDA does not currently impose any formal health guidelines for energy bars. So, pluck the wrong one from the store shelf and you could end up munching on a product loaded with fat and sugar. One obvious way to combat this: before tearing into an energy bar, read the FDA-mandated "Nutrition Facts" panel on the packaging.
So what should you look for? Aside from carbs and protein (which can vary depending on usage), Suzanne Farrell, a registered dietitian in Denver, Colorado and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association offers these nutrition guidelines. Good energy bars should contain at least three grams of fiber (to keep you sated); less than three grams of unhealthful, saturated fat; zero trans fats and no more than 18 grams of sugar, she says. Want to learn more? Read our new report on energy bars.