Thoughts on Protein Bars...are they really just candy bars

[BigAndy69]

I've been doing some thinking on protein bars. Now, I am assuming that water is completely removed from a bar for a longer shelf life. I heard that there are certain things that companies do not have to list in the nutritional values label like glycerine which are not considered food sources. I beleive that some of these "hidden carbs" are metabolised by the body like regular carbohydrates so they yield the same calories. Let's say a Bar has 25g of protein, 15g of carbs, and 5g of fat. The bar has a total weight of 80g. The macronutrient only account for 40g of the bar, assuming it is fortified with vitamins and minerals, let's say 5g of micronutrients, that still leaves 35g that is not accounted for. I've noticed that with other foods.

I say that if you are dieting, you need to take into account that 35g.

Any comments?

 

[Dr. E]

I agree quite a bit with what you are saying.

The problem with protein bars is that they are too expensive and non-filling. I used to buy boxes of Pro-max bars and eat one post workout. After eating one, my appetite became enticed and I wanted another, and then another!!! In the end it was costing too much for the amount of protein I was actually getting.

Also, most of them have a fair number of carbs which makes them terrible when you are cutting!!

The Doc

 

[Kryp2o]

There was a story last week on the local news here about protein and fitness bars in general. The FDA and the fitness industry is in sort of a war over the fact that the FDA is claiming they did testing on most of these bars and found that 80% of the bars tested had more carbs than what was listed on the packaging, and that 20% of the bars tested had less protein than what was listed. Now, the FDA is claiming that the companies who make the bars are not meeting minimum requirements for so called approved FDA standards. The problem the fitness industry has with this is that there are no written standards clarified by the FDA at all. Now the fitness industry is fighting with them to establish standards so they know what is acceptable and what is not.

 

[MS]

I certainly agree that the majority of protein bars are merely high protein candy bars. But I don't think you can assume that all the missing 'weight' on the label comes from carbs. Although they are low in water, there is still water in them and many of them also have as much as 5 grams of fiber. I couldn't tell you exactly how much water is in a given bar because they all vary, but remember that glycerol is used mainly as a humectant (this means it attracts moisture and keeps the bars from drying out). It is a bonus that it adds lots low GI sweetness. It is totally dishonest though for a manufacturer not to tell you how many calories from glycerol there is in a bar.

 

[BigAndy69]

I guess some of it is water. I just see bars that have 30 g of protein, 10 g of carbs and they weigh something like a hundred grams!

I just don't like supps in the first place and I use them as little as possible. MS, have you ever seen Glycerol on its own? Nasty stuff.

 

[MS]

Actually I love glycerol. I have a 1 liter bottle of it at home that I use in baking and I also smear all over my freezer after defrosting the thing. I especially like to add it to my hiking granola bars. Oats, protein powder, nuts, dried fruit and glycerol-yummy, low GI slow burn energy food that also helps keep me from dehydrating since hiking means more water needed but less water available to drink. However, I do not normally eat glycerol, and definitely avoid it when I'm dieting.

 

[Enock]

I think the calories listed on the bars does include the glycerol. If you were to add the fat+protein+carbs. It wouldn't compute to the listed amount of calories on the bar. I think that that do include the Glycerol in the Calorie count. Since it is stated that it is 4 to a gram, though they do not mention how much is in the bar. You can figure the amount by adding up the calorie value of fat/pro/carb and subtracting that the remaining should be mostly the glycerol. Still I think that they should start labeling foods in more than just the 3 categories. Since not everything falls into these categories. Its interesting the signs of being a carb glycerol displays but also the reasons they kept it from being classified. I just find it hard to believe that all food can be classified into 3 types.

 

[needtogetaas]

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[needtogetaas]

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[1999TL]

I used to buy the commercial ones. Waste of money. Horrible gas. I haven't tried Needto's yet.