Dang it, learned my buyer beware lesson the hard way last ni

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alyssamiller77
alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So I was out and about last night and realized I still had about 460 calories to fill. I was feeling somewhat hungry and knew I could really use some additional protien so I stopped at the grocery store and figured I'd buy a protein bar and some cashews. Got the cashews, no problem. Went to get the protein bar and of course was met with a number of options from makers like EAS, Slim Fast, Weight Watchers and others. The EAS Carb Control bars had the big label indicating they only had 4g "Net" carbs and 17g of Protein per bar. Plus they were on a buy one get one sale that made them about $1 per bar. So being in a hurry, I grabbed 6 without really investigating the ingredients or the nutrition information.

So I ripped one open and dug in, it surprisinglin tasted pretty good. While eating it, I started reading the nutrtion facts. The first thing that caught my eye was the 25g of Carbs!!! What?!?! Oh yeah, 4g *NET* carbs. So I figured that just meant there was a lot of fiber. Nope, wrong answer, very little fiber but a tone of sugar alcohols. Hmm, now I'm saying uh oh. So I move on to the ingredients list, figuring they're a nutrition company they must use one of the better options for sugar alcohol. Wrong again. There it was is small almost unreadable print with about 40 other ingredients, "Maltitol Syrup". Ugh. I'd have been better off eating a 3 Tbsp of straight table sugar.

So I learned my lesson, read the dang nutrition label before you buy it stupid. Unfortunately, I've now got 5 EAS bars that I'm not sure will ever get eaten.

Replies

  • NeuroticVirgo
    NeuroticVirgo Posts: 3,671 Member
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    I hate when stuff like that happens. Like when your hungry, so you grab something like a banana nut muffin (because that sounds healthy right?)...and then find out it has about 10x more calories that a creme filled doughnut!
  • Avalonis
    Avalonis Posts: 1,540 Member
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    Actually, I eat the EAS Myoplex bars, but I realize they have a ton of sugar in them. I am not on a low carb diet, so no worries.

    I like to eat them about an hour before cardio to keep my energy level up with the sugar and then burn it off. But to each their own ;)
  • JamesonsMommy
    JamesonsMommy Posts: 771 Member
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    if you have your receipt take them back to the store. Worst they could do is give you a store credit :)
  • mabug01
    mabug01 Posts: 1,273 Member
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    They make pretty good doorstops.
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    This is the exact reason why I started making my own, even researching them online was sorely disappointing.
  • carlobuff
    carlobuff Posts: 39
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    Put them out where you know other folks will eat them. Just get rid of them before you tear into another.
  • carymi30
    carymi30 Posts: 32
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    Well If you find a good protein bar let me know. The few I know of I have to drive an hour to get them! Good luck and dont beat yourself up after all lesson learned. Have a great day!
  • carymi30
    carymi30 Posts: 32
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    Would love to have your recipe!
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    Actually, I eat the EAS Myoplex bars, but I realize they have a ton of sugar in them. I am not on a low carb diet, so no worries.

    I like to eat them about an hour before cardio to keep my energy level up with the sugar and then burn it off. But to each their own ;)

    I'm not really on a "low" carb diet as it were but I don't want to over do it on carbs or sugars. If I'm going to splurge on either one, I'd rather it be something better tasting and more filling than a protein bar (like say a burrito or a meal from Noodles and Co. or something). I'll have to see if I have the receipt and maybe return them. Otherwise just try to fit them in on a heavier workout day where the extra carbs and sugar might work out.
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    Would love to have your recipe!

    Me too!! Please share if you wouldn't mind.
  • KateHubb
    KateHubb Posts: 366 Member
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    Don't be too hard on yourself about it. Last week I was hungry and at the gas station. I grabbed a bag of "Energizer Trail Mix" thinking ok... this can't be too horrible... much better than a candy bar. Well after I ate the whole 9 oz bag, I calculated the calories and it was over 1000! Yeah I should have looked at the nutrition facts and yeah, I shouldn't have eaten the whole bag, but no one is perfect. I could have eaten 2 cheeseburgers and large fries... lesson learned!
  • gwenmf
    gwenmf Posts: 888 Member
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    hate when that happens........expensive lessons
  • ChantalGG
    ChantalGG Posts: 2,404 Member
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    Eat before you are going on a hike or about to do some big workout/sports thing.
  • silkysly
    silkysly Posts: 701 Member
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    I stick with Pure Protein brand. They are usually around 2g of sugar & 18 g of protein.
  • Papillon22
    Papillon22 Posts: 1,160 Member
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    so, what in the world do they mean by net carbs?
    what an ugly surprise!
  • joybell32
    joybell32 Posts: 252 Member
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    This is the exact reason why I started making my own, even researching them online was sorely disappointing.

    Care to share this with the rest of us?
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    Hey, since I've gotten some requests I'll post tonight when I get home from work.

    Just as an FYI - I started with a low calorie granola bar that included eggs, added protein powder (a serving per intended bar), and upped my egg content to make up for the change in texture due to the powder. They require refridgeration over the long haul, but are sustainable outside of the fridge for a few hours (because of the eggs). If you want to see the nutrient info on them take a look at my diary, I have it in as my 10:30 snack today.
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    so, what in the world do they mean by net carbs?
    what an ugly surprise!

    The whole idea of net carbs centers around how much the carbohydrates in a food actually affect your blood glucose levels as your body metabolizes the food. For instance, fiber is a carbohydrate but does not get procesed by your body the way that sugar does and therefore does not elevate your blood glucose levels in the same way. So the net carb idea started with subtracting fiber grams from total carbs since the fiber wouldn't boost your blood glucose. Manufacturers have now also locked in on sugar alcohols as an alternative to regular sugar for sweetening. Many of the sugar alcohols (such as maltitol discussed here) don't have the same effect on blood glucose levels either. However, it varies by person and also by which sugar alcohol they use. Maltitol was originally believed to be more transparent to blood glucose but has more recently been proven to affect most people in very similar ways to regular sugar. So where it was once believed you could subtract those carbs as well (like we do with fiber), the reality is it doesn't work that way. So claims like EAS's are not really true. However the FDA does not regulate those claims so there's nothing to prevent them continuing to label their products that way.

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