Protein bars without sugar alcohols/artificial sweeteners?
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gradchica27
Posts: 777 Member
I’m a mostly vegetarian pescatarian (so fish maybe once a week, eggs maybe twice a week, not much milk/cheese), so I do supplement my protein to get enough to support my 5-6 day/wk heavy lifting habit.
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
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Replies
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I eat these for breakfast sometimes and really enjoy them, but they are only 12g of protein in 180 calories. So about 25% of cals to protein only.
This is the issue you'll run into with non-artificially sweetened protein bars. Something has to make the protein taste edible, and if it's not going to be artificial sweetebers, it's gonna be sugars. So you'll get less protein for your calories Than yuu would otherwise.3 -
gradchica27 wrote: »I’m a mostly vegetarian pescatarian (so fish maybe once a week, eggs maybe twice a week, not much milk/cheese), so I do supplement my protein to get enough to support my 5-6 day/wk heavy lifting habit.
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
One option is to bake your own using a protein powder you like. You can buy plain, unflavored protein powder and mix it with flavorings.
Another option is to add protein powder to other things. If a bar fills you up more than a shake does, that may be because the bar has added fiber or other macros that increase satiety. You can get the same result in other ways. For example, my usual breakfast is 0% Greek yogurt, chocolate PB2, chocolate protein powder, and fiber cereal. The fiber and protein help me meet my macros and keep me going until lunch.
It may also be worth considering which sweeteners give you digestive upset; you might be able to eat some and not others. It's well documented that the sugar alcohols (artificial sweeteners that usually end in -ol, such as malitol and erythritol) cause digestive problems in some people. Unfortunately, those sweeteners are very common, but you might find that you're able to eat things like sucralose or stevia, which are chemically different.3 -
I'm a BIG fan of Kind bars, check out their nutrition info to see if it's what you are looking for. I keep Kind Minis in my desk at work for a tasty lift.
https://www.kindsnacks.com/protein-bars/3 -
I LOVE Nature Valley Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate protein bars. So much that now I only buy one small box for my TOM. I would never think of eating a Snickers bar per day, but I was eating multiples of these per day because protein.
That's not to say they would not be a good option for someone who is able to moderate them.
https://www.naturevalley.com/product/gluten-free-protein-bars-peanut-butter-dark-chocolate/
Roasted Peanuts, Soy Protein Isolate, Chicory Root Extract, Semisweet Chocolate Chips (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural flavor), Vegetable Oils (palm kernel, palm, canola, peanut), Sugar, Corn Syrup, Whey Protein Concentrate, Fructose, Peanut Butter (peanuts, salt), Cocoa, Vegetable Glycerin, Rice Starch, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Corn Starch, Natural Flavor.1 -
gradchica27 wrote: »I’m a mostly vegetarian pescatarian (so fish maybe once a week, eggs maybe twice a week, not much milk/cheese), so I do supplement my protein to get enough to support my 5-6 day/wk heavy lifting habit.
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
One option is to bake your own using a protein powder you like. You can buy plain, unflavored protein powder and mix it with flavorings.
Another option is to add protein powder to other things. If a bar fills you up more than a shake does, that may be because the bar has added fiber or other macros that increase satiety. You can get the same result in other ways. For example, my usual breakfast is 0% Greek yogurt, chocolate PB2, chocolate protein powder, and fiber cereal. The fiber and protein help me meet my macros and keep me going until lunch.
It may also be worth considering which sweeteners give you digestive upset; you might be able to eat some and not others. It's well documented that the sugar alcohols (artificial sweeteners that usually end in -ol, such as malitol and erythritol) cause digestive problems in some people. Unfortunately, those sweeteners are very common, but you might find that you're able to eat things like sucralose or stevia, which are chemically different.
Yes, I'm dialing in a recipe for my own. Right now they are still too enjoyable for me to be able to moderate well
Instead of the unsweetened cocoa, I use two scoops of sweetened chocolate protein powder, which makes them too much like a dessert. Last time I increased oats and decreased the dates, but they still taste too good. I'm going to get some puffed rice to bulk them out some so I can hopefully stick to one.
I adjust the serving sizes so they come to @ 100 calories each.
https://jessicainthekitchen.com/no-bake-chocolate-peanut-butter-energy-bites/- 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
- 1 cup dates, chopped
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/3 cup cocoa/cacao powder (I use two scoops of chocolate protein powder)
**********************
I've also made the following, but I was able to moderate them so well that most of them stayed in the frig until I eventually threw them out The second time I made them I used real PB, instead of PB2, which helped some, but apparently not enough.
So I will look to mix and match until I get something I both like and am able to moderate.
https://littlebitsof.com/2015/01/pb2-protein-power-balls/- 1/3 cup PB2
- 2 tablespoons agave (or honey)
- 1/2 cup of oats
- 1/2 cup of crisped rice
- 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- one scoop vanilla protein powder
- 24 chocolate chips
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gradchica27 wrote: »I’m a mostly vegetarian pescatarian (so fish maybe once a week, eggs maybe twice a week, not much milk/cheese), so I do supplement my protein to get enough to support my 5-6 day/wk heavy lifting habit.
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
I hear ya. I have had the same experience with high fiber and/or "-ol" sweeteners. I have the same reaction to Chicory root extract/fiber. Kind bars and Nature Valley Protein bars have chicory in them. I tried and tried hoping that my system will eventually get accustomed to these ingredients. I especially wanted to stomach Kirkland ones because they taste great and are affordable. Protein bars that don't give me any side effects are Clif and some flavors of Balance Bar(Peanut Butter, Cookie Dough and Caramel Nut Blast). I believe there's also Yogurt Peanut (I haven't tried that one). Also, check out Zone Bars. Last time I checked there were several flavors that have glucose and/or fructose based sweeteners.1 -
I don't think you "need" to supplement your protein with powders/bars. If you want to, of course follow others' suggestions.
But you can get a lot of protein from nuts and seeds. It's pretty easy to add hemp, flax, chia seeds to lots of different foods.0 -
Seitan Pepperoni - not a protein bar but potentially a good snack: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/241963/seitan-pepperoni/
- Almost 12 g of protein in 113 calories.
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar for the whole batch - with vegan sugar this recipe would be vegan.
Going to try it as soon as I get some nutritional yeast. Or just replace that with Parmesan.3 -
I don't think you "need" to supplement your protein with powders/bars. If you want to, of course follow others' suggestions.
But you can get a lot of protein from nuts and seeds. It's pretty easy to add hemp, flax, chia seeds to lots of different foods.
For most people, eating enough nuts and seeds to get a substantial amount of protein is going to be a lot of calories. 100 grams of walnuts give me about 15 grams of protein, but that's over 600 calories. Hemp seeds are lower calorie, but 100 grams is going to be about 10 grams of protein. It's not really a equivalent to a product that has 20 grams of protein in 210 calories.5 -
I don't think you "need" to supplement your protein with powders/bars. If you want to, of course follow others' suggestions.
But you can get a lot of protein from nuts and seeds. It's pretty easy to add hemp, flax, chia seeds to lots of different foods.
As I understand it she's looking for a snack and said she finds protein bars satisfying, not saying she needs them to hit her protein goal.
I find nuts satisfying, but if it's the protein that does it for OP, a similar-sized snack (200 cal) of almonds (for example) would have only about 7 g of protein.0 -
gradchica27 wrote: »I’m a mostly vegetarian pescatarian (so fish maybe once a week, eggs maybe twice a week, not much milk/cheese), so I do supplement my protein to get enough to support my 5-6 day/wk heavy lifting habit.
So to my question: anyone have a protein bar they love (or even don’t hate) that does not have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners (xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, lactitol, isomalt)?
I love ONE bars but they have maltitol and sucralose. Also ate a decent amount of Kirkland protein bars (with erythritol & stevia). Didn’t think much of that (artificial sweeteners would give me gallbladder attacks but have had my gallbladder out, so figured I was safe). Apparently not. Took six months of chronic constipation, bloating, and abdominal pain for me to finally wonder if it was dietary and not just hormonal (that plays a part for me as well). Cut out the bars and I am a new woman.
Currently I’m enjoying Clif Builders bars with no I’ll effects. Anything else I can try?
(And yes I know I can do shakes/powder in my smoothies, but I find a bar fills me up more than a smoothie/shake and I don’t have a giant calorie budget. Also know I can actually eat protein, but I don’t find eggs/fish a desirable snack. Protein bar satisfaction es sweet tooth and hunger for me. My grocery store doesn’t have a lot of options to try out, so I don’t want to waste $ ordering a box of something awful on Amazon)
How much protein are you looking for per bar?? Rxbars are a safe bet. Also Love gomacro. A little pricier though3 -
I love RXbars. You can tell by the way they look and taste that they use only the cleanest ingredients. Some people complain that they are too chewy, but I find that helps curb hunger. It's not vegan as they use egg whites, but it is gluten free. Some flavors are high in sugar, especially the fruit ones, because they use dates as natural sweeteners. The lowest one is 13 grams, I believe, and that's the chocolate sea salt (my personal fave). The mini ones are half that though, so if you're watching your sugar intake those are probably a safe bet.4
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Also not sure what type of protein blend you're looking for... but NuGo has some good products as well. Mix of soy, rice and whey proteins
https://www.nugonutrition.com/products/2 -
@pancakerunner and @cokezerolime thank you for mentioning Rx bar. I think these should not cause any digestive distress to you @gradchica27. Costco in my area (CA) sells them at an affordable price.2
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RxBar chocolate sea salt are awesome. All flavors have simliar macro content, and have a lot of sugar from the dates. But there is no added sugar, and no artificial sweeteners. Pretty awesome 210 calorie breakfast or snack.4
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Thanks for all the great suggestions! I have seen RX bars but no one I knew actually tried them, but if Costco carries them I will def give them a try.
And yes, I could eat a ton of nuts—but I don’t have the calories for that. Plus I tend to over eat nuts. I have lower abdominal pain with eating things like homemade granola with nuts and seeds, so adding a lot to my diet on purpose won’t end well.
My son has been asking me to make “energy balls”—they sound very similar to @kshama2001 ‘s recipe (I make the kids without protein powder, mine with). But they are WAY TOO DELICIOUS and I can’t stop walking by the fridge and picking one up 😆4 -
nugonutrition wrote: »Hi!
NuGo Slim® bars have 16-18g of protein, 6-7g of fiber, 5-6 net carbs, only 2-3 g of sugar. Slim bars are free of gluten and maltitol, and the Slim line features four vegan, pareve flavors. Check us out here: https://www.nugonutrition.com/products/slim/
Have a great day!
MFP user: nugonutrition
*cough*0 -
pancakerunner wrote: »nugonutrition wrote: »Hi!
NuGo Slim® bars have 16-18g of protein, 6-7g of fiber, 5-6 net carbs, only 2-3 g of sugar. Slim bars are free of gluten and maltitol, and the Slim line features four vegan, pareve flavors. Check us out here: https://www.nugonutrition.com/products/slim/
Have a great day!
MFP user: nugonutrition
*cough*
I had to get to the part where it says "check us out here".0 -
gradchica27 wrote: »Thanks for all the great suggestions! I have seen RX bars but no one I knew actually tried them, but if Costco carries them I will def give them a try.
And yes, I could eat a ton of nuts—but I don’t have the calories for that. Plus I tend to over eat nuts. I have lower abdominal pain with eating things like homemade granola with nuts and seeds, so adding a lot to my diet on purpose won’t end well.
My son has been asking me to make “energy balls”—they sound very similar to @kshama2001 ‘s recipe (I make the kids without protein powder, mine with). But they are WAY TOO DELICIOUS and I can’t stop walking by the fridge and picking one up 😆
Definitely pick up a single bar to try before you buy a whole case of anything from Costco. Taste is very subjective...I tried one of those RX bars, and found it to be one of the most horrible things I have ever tasted.0 -
SuzySunshine99 wrote: »gradchica27 wrote: »Thanks for all the great suggestions! I have seen RX bars but no one I knew actually tried them, but if Costco carries them I will def give them a try.
And yes, I could eat a ton of nuts—but I don’t have the calories for that. Plus I tend to over eat nuts. I have lower abdominal pain with eating things like homemade granola with nuts and seeds, so adding a lot to my diet on purpose won’t end well.
My son has been asking me to make “energy balls”—they sound very similar to @kshama2001 ‘s recipe (I make the kids without protein powder, mine with). But they are WAY TOO DELICIOUS and I can’t stop walking by the fridge and picking one up 😆
Definitely pick up a single bar to try before you buy a whole case of anything from Costco. Taste is very subjective...I tried one of those RX bars, and found it to be one of the most horrible things I have ever tasted.
I agree. RxBars are hit or miss. I only like a couple of the flavors0
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