But then the corporations wouldn't have as big a profit margin, silly!

I agree. Other 'health' bars like Zone or Balance bars are not much more than candy bars. My husband eats a Zone or Balance bar every day and tells me how healthy they are and that they keep him in the "zone"! I read the ingredients and there's lots of stuff that's not so healthy in there, like corn syrup and various chemicals. Also, they are about 200 calories each - which would take a big chunk out of my daily allowance.

Personally, I think it's an excuse to have a candy bar and call it a "health food" !

I like Pria bars- They are kinda pricey but there only 130 calories. The chocolate one kicks butt and it stalls my hunger in case i can;t make it to lunch.

Yes, they are basically candy bars, this is true. But some are a smaller size than most candy bars, and thus have fewer calories. I sometimes get the, I think think, the slimfast bars because they come in at under 130 calories, I forget the exact number. They satisfy a craving, without blowing my diet out of the water for that day.

But I am under no illusions that I simply doing anything other than eating a small candy bar rather than a full sized one. For me, portion control is the main element in my diet, so this is acceptable to me (once in a while!).

Actually my Dr told me if I was going to eat a "bar" go ahead & have a hershey candy bar - just look at the %s on them -- they are almost identical and Hersheys tastes WAY better. Not that I did that of course, I just think it was funny he said that.

the thing with Pria bars, is that it doesn't make me want more chocolate after I eat it. Hersheys is a whole different story!

Hershey's Plain Milk Chocolate Bar, 230 calories, 120 from fat.

Slimfast Rich and Chewy Caramel Snack Bars, 120 calories, 40 from fat.

I'm not arguing that either is a great choice when one is trying to lose weight. Still, the "snack bar" has about half the calories, and a third of the fat of the Hersheys. Not a good choice, maybe, but a better choice, just looking at the numbers.

Taste? That's personal, of course. But I like the slimfast bars well enough, and they do give me the feeling that "I'm eating a candy bar!" without as many calories. Sure, I could just eat half a hersheys... in theory. But me leave half a candy bar behind. Sorry, that just isn't very bloody likely.

Tealeaf, I guess you do have a good point by choosing a slimfast bar over real chocolate for the nutritional value, but they have a wierd after taste..if I want my vitamines, I'll just take caplets, it won't kill me.

As for all those protien or extra fiber bars, I was watching Alton Brown's Good eats and he was explaining how high in fat and sodium a tiny bar can contain. You can make your own batch at home. Not only are they more nutritiously acceptable, but at least you know what's going in them. Oh and you get your fiber/protien/whatever naturally from seeds and nuts you put in there yourself.

Should I give up the Luna bars?

Veggie Lover, I like the Pria bars, too, for the same reasons you mentioned. Of all the bars I've tried, I think they give the most bang for the buck. They taste good. They have the least calories (I thought they were 110, not 130), and they can really take the edge off hunger if I can't have a proper meal, for whatever reason.

I haven't been at all impressed with any of the other bars I've tried, and I've tried a bunch of them. Usually, it's one bite and off to the trash with you!

I must say though, I am tempted to try one of those bars when I see those shiny wrappers with "chocolate chip fudge explosion" or "belgian creamy chocolate" flavors. They make them SOUND better than a haagen daz (sp?) ice-cream anyway...only to be unpleasantly surprised...

I prefer the Kashi granola bars. They are chewy and gooey and very satisfying for low calories. They stave my appetite at work when I can not get to lunch. I work in a busy Surgical ICU and sometimes I don't get to stop until 3pm. This holds me so I don't go search for candy in the mean time.

I'm not a real big snack bar fan, but every now and then I'll munch one just to grab something quick. Like if I know I'm going to be out all day running my mother-in-law around (haha) I'll toss one in my purse so I don't go for hours on end without eating anything. But the Slimfast bars and all those others just aren't worth it to me for the calories they have. So I buy the Quaker Chewy Granola Bars, the ones with 25% less sugar than regular bars and they're only 100 calories each. I like the peanut butter chocolate chunk.

I've got two boxes of Slimfast bars in my pantry that have been there for months because I can never find the calorie room for them. The breakfast bars are 180 calories and they don't fill me up. Heck, for 180 calories I can make myself a "mcmuffin" for breakfast using a light english muffin, scrambled egg whites and a slice of cheddar-flavored soy cheese. That's going to satisfy me lots more than one of those sugar-laden breakfast bars.

I never did buy into the "healthy snack bar" thing because they're really not as healthy as many people would like to believe.

Wow, well said LLV!