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Calorie Traps

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Posted by Your Guide on June 28, 2006 9:50 PM

You may think you are eating healthy, but there are plenty of high-calorie foods out there that disguise themselves as being good for you. Here are some of the biggest enemies to your diet:

• Soups and Salads- You may think you had a healthy lunch today with your soup and salad, but you may be mistaken. If you loaded your salad with a fattening dressing, gobs of cheese, and croutons, you might as well have had a burger. In fact, women who eat a lot of salads get as much as 60% of their daily fat allowance from the dressing. Soups can be nutritious, but cream-based ones, such as broccoli cheese soup or New England clam chowder pack an astounding number of calories and fat grams.
• Sugar-free cookies- Just because a product claims to be sugar-free, does not necessarily mean it is lower in calories or that it is good for you. Always check the label before eating a product advertising this. You might be getting as many calories as the real thing.
• Pork- It claims to be the other white meat, but pork can be detrimental to your diet, although it depends on the cut and the way it is prepared. A lean cut of meat, such as tenderloin or a sirloin, could be ruined with sauce or cheese.
• Coffee- Coffee by itself is generally okay for your diet. However, packing on “accessories” to your coffee can add as many as 1,000 calories to your 16 oz. cup.
• Breakfast Bars- Although these little beauties seem like a quick and nutritious way to get out the door in the morning, a look at the ingredients list may tell you otherwise. If one of the first three ingredients is high fructose corn syrup, then you had better steer clear.
• Dried fruit and Granola- A handful of dried fruit or granola is ok, but these seemingly healthy foods pack a high amount of fat and calories. Since dried fruits are removed of their water, they contain significantly more calories than their hydrated counterparts.
• Juice and Soda- Drinking juice and soda are easy ways to pile up calories without even realizing it. A juice in the morning and a soda in the afternoon can add up to 400 additional calories.
• Low-fat/Low-Cal Foods- Low-Cal does not mean no cal. Just because something is labeled low in fat or calories does not give you license to eat the whole thing.
• Nuts- Some kinds of nuts are good for you. They are rich in protein and vitamins. However, they are also high in fat and calories. It’s difficult to eat a single serving of nuts, and they are only healthy when eaten in moderation.


References
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/graphics/foodlabelspecial/pg44.pdf
www.fda.gov/opacom/lowlit/weightls.html
http://www.weightwatchers.com
www.jennycraig.com
http://www.foodfit.com/ffcommunity/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=972



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