I'm on a mission to root out unhealthy school snacks that claim to be healthy and expose their true lack of nutritional value. I've had it with school snacks that proclaim to be healthy but are in fact full of junk.
Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Bars and Eggo Nutri-Grain Waffles and most cereal and granola bars. Loaded with high fructose corn syrup, artificial color and hydrogenated fat, low protein and junk carbs. These are just cookies with a fancy "nutritional" name added. Look for snack bars with no HFCS and protein.
Sun Maid yogurt covered raisins: We are supposed to assume that because these raisins are coated in yogurt and not chocolate, that they have the health goodness of yogurt and are better for us. Wrong. Yogurt covered raisins are basically candy covered raisins. But they don't taste as good as Raisinets.
General Mills and Post Cereal Bars: Initially Post and GM had the audacity to market these as milk and cereal bars. Pulleez- they are basically Coco Puffs and Fruit Loops mixed with marshmallow and pasted together with more marshmallow. In short they are candy bars. Make Rice Krispie Treats at home and you'll be farther ahead. Or give your kids Coco-Puffs with milk. Or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Betty Crocker Fruit Snacks: Betty Crocker isn't the only one selling us a crock with her packaged 'fruit snacks'. Fruit snacks are a misnomer for highly sugared gelatin tidbits, similar to Juji Fruits and Dots, that come luridly colored , in bizarre flavors and are shaped like cartoon characters. Just the names Fruit Gushers, Fruit by the Foot (a sort of high fructose tape) make me ill. In my day, we called these fruit snacks candy. Welches and Sunkist Fruit Snacks are one step up. They at least do not have artificial color and do contain some fruit juice and 100% RDA of Vitamin C. You could just send the child to school with an orange or a banana.
