which food is healther: muffin, scone, or croissant?
 

I can't live without my coffee and pastry in the morning and I was wondering if anyone knew out of these choices which is healthier in terms of fat/sugar/calories? I live at school and we have a meal plan and are able to get the coffee bean so I always order a cafe vanilla with the no sugar added/fat free powder and the pastries they offer are usually fat free or reduced fat muffins and scones .. the croissants can come with cheese or chocolate filling and im guessing to stay away from those but if anyone can help that would be great! :)

The croissants definitely sound evil! If they label some of the scones and muffins as reduced fat, they probably have the data for calories, etc and could give it to you upon request. They can be low in fat, but still pack a lot of sugar which increases their calorie content.

What Suzanne said. ;)

Even reduced fat/fat free muffins, etc are generally LOADED with sugar. I don't believe a fat free croissant exists (otherwise it wouldn't be a croissant!).

Besides the calories, another problem with starting off your day with a giant hit of sugar is that generally, eating sugar (especially in the morning) makes you crave more and more sugar throughout the day. Also, the 'burst' of energy that your body initially gets as the 'sugar rush' goes away rather quickly - meanwhile your hunger is not satisfied...which puts you at risk of eating too many calories.

Here's a tip: The more sugar you cut out of your diet, the better chance you have of taking the weight off and KEEPING it off. ;) In the 1990's 'fat free' was the rage but ya know what...it's SUGAR, not fat, that's generally the bad guy when it comes to obesity.

Surely your meal plan offers healthier, BETTER choices than sugary, unhealthy pastries? What about oatmeal? hardboiled egg? fresh fruit? a small handful of nuts?

I agree to a degree with what MrsJim says regarding reducing sugar. And certainly there are better, healthy choices for breakfast than pastries. With that said, though, regardless of what you do to lose weight you can't keep it off if you don't enjoy the plan. Definately, avoid those croissaints. And it is hard to say which is the best choice between the muffin and the scone without knowing the type or size. I agree that you should ask for the nutritional information of each and base your decision on that. Now, having said all of that, maybe a compromise that you can make with yourself is to follow MrsJims good advice and go with oatmeal or something most of the week and treat yourself to the healtier version of your favorite pastry just once or twice. It sounds like you really enjoy them and if you give them up completely not only are you going to feel deprived but if you ever break down and have one you'll likely beat yourself up about it because it has been stigmatized as a "bad" food. An alternative is to build it cautiously into your plan and have the best of both worlds.

have you ever had biscotti? Those are similar to scones-and much lower in fat and cals. Stay clear away from the croissant (it's all butter)-but we gotta treat ourselves now and then;)

Another vote for oatmeal rather than any of the choices listed. Steel-cut oats -- not instant -- though.

None. Nope, I would and do eat Steel Cut Oats. Healthier and sticks with me longer. Not only that it does not mess with my blood sugar like a pastry would.

thanks for the advice guys... I have decided that I am slowly going to come off of my morning ritual until I get to about once a week (a little treat never hurts ;) ) I have never had oatmeal but I hear your praises, I will go get some tomorrow .. but is instant okay? I've heard of the new quaker oat low sugar kind ... any good?

check the label and the lower one. making it from scratch is better, because youn add what you want. good luck. :) glen

I hear what you are saying. Going cold turkey may be headed for a binge later on. I am all about eating what you want and enjoying your food with whatever plan you are on. Right now, you are trying to modify your current routine and slowly get into a new routine.

Look for the caloric content for the muffins/scones (croissants are definitely a very once in a while treat) and go with the lower calorie if they are both low in fat. I tend to think the scones are lower in calories because they are "drier", but not sure.

I agree with the biscotti idea. Biscotti is lovely and yummy and satisfies your urges to chew and your sweet tooth. I do suggest that you eventually move to something with some protein in it!