How to choose a healthy protein bar

[Katie Derusha]

Tips for choosing a healthy protein bar

Protein bars are great for on the go but not to be used as a food staple. There are hundreds of protein bars to choose from, it is hard to know the good from the bad so here are a few tips help make a healthy choice.

1) A protein bar can easily be just as bad as a chocolate bar, the only difference is they added a bit of low quality protein to the chocolate mixture. READ THE INGREDIENTS. Ingredients should be things you recognize like raisins, broccoli, matcha tea powder, whey protein isolate....etc....
Anything that has ingredients that you don't recognize could make the product rich in fillers.

Red Flag words are *Corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, glucose, maltodextrin, dextrose, sorbitol and fructose. These are all different names for high concentrations of sugar. Put the bar down if it contains any or multiple of these ingredients

2) The only healthy sweeteners are anything from the earth that hasn't been overly processed, here are a few I recommend (also to be used sparingly)

-Stevia (doesn't affect insulin levels)
-Xylitol (doesn't affect insulin levels)
-unpasteurized honey, bee pollen, honeycomb
-100% pure organic maple syrup (NO aunt jamima's for you)
-Blue agave nectar
-Dates


3) Protein MUST say 'whey protein isolate'. If it isn't isolated protein, then it is cheap and can give you gut rot. Also look for hemp or brown rice protein in vegan bars

There are only a few brands of protein bars that I recommend.

1) Elev 8 me
2) Organic food bar (greens flavor)
3) Vega bar
4) Rebars are good but do not contain protein

Example of an ingredients label from a protein bar to stay away from- RED FLAG
Ingredients:
XTREMEPRO™ (our special blend of whey protein concentrate, whey protein isolate, soy protein isolate, hydrolyzed protein and whey peptides), glycerine, cocoa, water, chocolate coating and chips (polydextrose, palm kernel oil, non fat dry milk, cocoa powder, soya lecithin, salt and sucralose), sunflower oil, natural flavours, maltitol, medium chain trigylcerides, soya lecithin, potassium sorbate, acesulfame potassium and sucralose.

Vega Protein bar, example of an alkaline healthy snack
Ingredients
Dates, hemp protein, almond butter, agave nectar, organic sprouted whole flax seeds, cranberries, raisins, almonds, sesame seeds, organic sprouted mung beans, organic wheat grass, natural berry flavor, lemon juice, organic dulse.

Try making your own protein bars with natural, live ingredients. Just remember to keep them in the fridge until you are ready to pack it for the day or eat it!