Don't miss this great article about so-called 'health foods' that pack a HUGE calorie wallop!

How to avoid diet-busting health foods

There's also a quiz to take: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12703840/

Number one on their list is granola and boy, do I have to second that as a food. I bought a box last week for a brunch recipe and could not believe the nutritional info on the side of the box. It's a black hole of calories! How on earth did granola get a reputation as a 'health food'?? After I made the recipe, the rest of the granola went straight into the trash.

What about the other foods on the list - have you ever been fooled by their 'health food' status?

I somewhat disagree with the answer to the Jamba question - they just introduced some all-fruit smoothies that are 100% frozen fruit and fruit juice. You can get a 16 oz size of one of those for around 190 calories, and you can add a fiber boost to it for 12 calories and an additional 8 grams of fiber...I consider 200 calories and a total of 12 grams of fiber to be decent for an afternoon pick me up/snack. So it definitely depends on what you order, but there are sensible ways to get an afternoon snack at Jamba juice! Maybe not the absolute best option, but filling with all the fiber and gets you a couple servings of fruit, and if you are on the go and need somewhere to stop, its really not bad.

All of the other ones, though, I agreed with.

I'm with you on the granola. I used to think it was so good for you and would buy it by the double bag at Costco. I'd eat it as a cereal, a snack, put it on my yogurt. I never thought to look on the label.

Needless to say I don't buy it anymore except for my elder son who loves it and takes it back to college with him.

Granola is

It's also loaded with sugar.

I bought a box of lowfat granola last week for a recipe that called for it. 230 calories in 2/3 cup. And this is the lowfat, keep in mind. Only 0.5 grams of saturated fat, but 17 grams of sugar.

Eye-opening! Yikes. Fortunately there was nothing there that I eat on a regular basis, though I have had run-ins with yogurt covered pretzels and trail mix in the past. My DH loves granola, but I make it for him rather than buying it in a box (besides he's one of those natural skinnies, and I'm often trying to help him gain... )

I don't usually post in this forum, but I saw the link on the home page and checked it out...I completely disagree with the points on granola, trail mix, and jamba juice. I have lost 45 pounds eating trail mix as my morning snack, jamba juices for lunch or dinner (either size, depending on how many calories i've had that day), and yogurt with granola as a snack. It's all about portion size!!! What's better for you...a 1/4 cup of trail mix with lots of healthy protein and fiber, or a piece of white toast with margarine that has no fiber or protein? I'll stick with my trail mix, thanks.

Well, hon, their point is that many people think these foods are 'health foods' and consume them in large amounts assuming it's going to help them lose weight. They just 'hear' the word "granola" and think "healthy". Any food can make you fat if you eat enough of it. I'm sure I could lose weight eating trail mix as well, as long as I don't consume more calories than my body needs.

But the point here is there are many people out there that don't know the hidden calories in these foods and eat them in excess because they believe them to be healthy.

Just to clarify, I'm not saying these foods are UNhealthy. But many people aren't aware of how many calories they contain. A half cup of most trail mixes can be as much as 300 calories. And it's VERY easy to eat a half cup of that stuff. Many people buy a bag of trail mix and eat the whole thing, assuming it's healthy, and end up ingesting over 500 calories.

Sorry, but I can think of much better things to blow 500 calories on.

I use my Jamba Juice gift card to get the all-fruit smoothies like you said. I never thought about adding fiber, though. I definitely should do that!

I agree LLV. It is easy to overeat a lot of things if you have these misconceptions. For example when it comes to nuts, most people realize that there is a lot of fat in just a handful so though it is good for them they know to eat in moderation.

Granola and trail mixes... on the other hand seem to fall into the category of it is soooooo good for you that you should eat a lot of it. I don't know why this is, it just is. Maybe it is our advertising.

One that always tricked me was banana chips, those things are soo high in fat!!

They also fall into that "once you start you can't stop" category, lol.

For the amount of calories in a half cup of trail mix, I can eat a piece of pizza or a 6" sub from Subway or an entire Lean Cuisine.

OMG, they are! I never knew that. I just went and looked them up and a 1.5 ounce serving of banana chips has 14 grams of fat, 12 saturated.

Yes, but if you have a food dehydrater you can make them w/o oil. They'll never be as good, but...

Another one: low-fat ice cream. Sure, it's only 100 calories for a serving, but the serving size is ridiculous, and that's for a loosely packed 1/2 cup. (I never knew this, always packed that sucker full).

On a side note, you can make your own granola with oats and sugar-free Da Vinci syrups. Has the same fat and calories of the oats alone. You add a little syrup to the oats, pinch them into clusters, and bake at the lowest oven setting for about an hour.

I agree -- ice cream 'servings' are the biggest joke ever. Just like the article said that most people eat 5-6 'servings' of granola at a time, I think most people serve themselves at least two cups (four servings) of ice cream. One-half cup of ice cream is only one of those little plastic cups that pudding or Jello come in - it's tiny!