The Best and WORST Protein Bars

Don't be fooled by "protein bars" that are really candy bars in disguise... read below for
The 6 Most Important Things to Look for in a Bar
by Mike Geary - Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author of best-seller:  The Truth About Six-Pack Abs

I know there's a lot of confusion these days about what actually constitutes a truly healthy "protein bar" or meal replacement bar... let's face it... most protein bars on the market have at least one or more of these evil ingredients:

• Too much sugar
• High fructose corn syrup
• Soy protein  (and no, soy protein is NOT healthy)
• Nasty artificial sweeteners  (anybody want some cancer with that protein bar?)
• Other chemical additives
• Artificial forms of vitamins, instead of naturally occuring
• Excessive amounts of sugar alcohols
• and even occasionally, shockingly, trans fats in some bars!

So with that said, some of the worst protein or "energy" bars out there have at least 1 or more of these problems above.
In all honestly, it's actually really hard to find a good bar that doesn't have one of these problems.  I've even seen some bars marketed as "healthy" that contain corn syrup as the 1st ingredient!  No, I'm not joking... they should be arrested for false advertising like that!
I'm not going to "name names" and name all of the junk protein bars (because there's simply too many bad ones to name), but you now know to avoid everything listed above.  And also, here's the absolute MOST important things I look for...
The 6 most important things that I look for in a good protein bar are:
1.  One of the first things I look for on the ingredient label is to make sure there is ZERO soy protein.
Remember that soy protein and soy products in general are one of the most contaminated crops with pesticide and herbicide residues (which are xenoestrogens that increase your "stubborn" belly fat)...
Soy is also the most genetically modified of any crop (which has it's own potentially scary issues we won't even delve into in this article)... and even worse, soy proteins in particular typically concentrate much of the phytoestrogens in soy (different than xenoestrogens), which adds a double whammy for adding belly fat to your body.  Organic soy is a step in the right direction, but I'd still stay away from it for many reasons.
Instead of soy protein, I look for healthier protein sources in my bars, such as brown rice protein, hemp protein, whey protein, or even just obtaining the protein content from various nuts and seeds.
2.  The 2nd most important thing that I make sure to avoid in protein bars are artificial sweeteners.... so I look out for sucralose, aspartame, acesulfame potassium (a.k.a acesulfame K), or any other artificial sweeteners.
I also try to avoid large amounts of sugar alcohols.  If a bar only has 1 or 2 grams of sugar alcohols, that's not a big deal, but I try to avoid anything more than that.
3.  The 3rd thing I look at is total carbohydrates and total grams of fiber.  Specifically, what I look for is a good ratio of grams of fiber to grams of total carbohydrates.  The higher the ratio of fiber compared to total carbs, the better this bar will be for your blood sugar stabilization, and therefore, appetite control.
For example, if bar1 has 5 grams of fiber, but 50 grams of total carbs, that's only 10% fiber content out of total carbs.  Not good!
However, if bar2 has 4 grams of fiber, and 16 grams of total carbs, that's actually 25% fiber content out of total carbs!  Bar2 had 1 gram less fiber, but had a MUCH better ratio (2.5x better ratio) of fiber to total carbs.  Bar2 is the clear winner... assuming it doesn't contain the other evil ingredients we talked about above.
4.  The 4th most important thing I look at on the nutrition label of a protein bar or energy bar is the protein content vs the carbohydrate content.
Generally, I look for at least 10 to 15 grams of protein or more, and maybe no more than 20-30 grams of total carbs.  However, we have to make sure that there's no soy protein, and also, if the fiber content is super high, it doesn't matter if the total carb amount is over 30 grams, as long as the ratio of fiber to total carbs is very high (at least 25% or more fiber content of total carbs)
5.  Another thing I generally look for in a good bar is about 8-15 grams of healthy fats (usually obtained from nuts and seeds in the ingredients, coconut oil, or almond butter).  This is important not only for having a good tasting bar, but also to make sure the bar has a better glycemic profile (which the healthy fats help with), and help to satisfy your appetite longer.
6.  The last thing I look for in a good bar is simply a bonus if it does contain any... and that would be if it has any superfoods or greens... superfoods such as spirulina, maca, blue-green algae, kelp, chlorella, goji berry, raw cacao or organic cocoa powder, and other greens, etc.
So with all of those things in mind, what are the BEST bars out there?
Well, I previously used to recommend a couple that were my favorites - Larabars and Organic Food Bars.
I still think both of these are excellent bars, and use almost solely organic, raw, natural ingredients without any soy protein, HFCS, artificial sweeteners, or other junk.  However, I've always felt they could do slightly better on the fiber content and the protein content... as those are 2 of the most important aspects of a good bar that I look for.
So, just last week, I found a NEW bar, that has just become my new favorite bar!  It's called the Boku Superfood Bar and I just received my box in the mail a couple days ago... and I'm blown away at not only how delicious these bars taste, but also how practically perfect they are in terms of nutrition!
And they're even cheaper than most bars at my local health food store... and better quality.  Needless to say, I'm a little excited about this new find!
Here's why I think these bars are almost perfect nutrition-wise:

• 15 grams of protein (from raw sprouted brown rice protein... and some from the almond butter too)
• a whopping 11 grams of fiber out of 30 grams of total carbs!  (that's a 37% ratio of fiber content... pefect for blood sugar stability)
• there's 13 grams of healthy fats (mostly from the almond butter and almonds)
• these bars also have some sprouted quinoa, and celtic sea salt (but are still low sodium)
• and best of all, they contain loads of superfoods from the Boku Superfood blend of greens, maca, goji berries, antioxidant-rich mushrooms, probiotics, enzymes, and more

Overall, these are the best bars I've found in terms of taste and nutrition combined!  You've gotta give em a try!
Also, I love this company because of their focus on super high quality ingredients.  I've also tried their Boku SuperProtein and and their Boku SuperFood, and I love the quality of both of those products too.  I think they're one of the best companies out there these days in the health food space for sure.
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The Salad Dressing You Should NEVER Eat -- and my Alternative Super-Healthy Recipe

by Mike Geary - Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author of best-selling program:  The Truth About Six Pack Abs 

If you want to eat truly healthy, support your fat loss goals, protect your body from inflammation, and avoid some of the nasty additives in processed food, one thing you should eliminate is typical store-bought salad dressing.
I personally NEVER buy pre-made salad dressings from the store anymore, and here's why:
1. Almost all store-bought salad dressings contain fairly significant amounts of high fructose cornn syr syrup (HFCS).  Unless you're in a health food store, it's almost impossible to find a salad dressing that doesn't contain large amounts of HFCS.
2. Almost all store-bought salad dressings contain heavily refined soybean oil and/or refined canola oil... both of which are VERY unhealthy. Yes, that's correct, canola oil IS unhealthy, despite the marketing propaganda you've been fed claiming that it's healthy. If interested, you can read more about why canola oil is NOT healthy here.
Due to the refining process of both soybean or canola oils, the polyunsaturated component of the oils is oxidized and makes these oils very inflammatory inside your body.  In addition, soybean oil is WAY too high in omega-6 fatty acids which throws your omega-6 to omega-3 balance out of whack.  And as you know, most people already consume FAR too much omega-6 oils to begin with.
We know that olive oil is healthier, but when it comes to store-bought dressings... Even salad dressings that claim to be "made with olive oil" on the FRONT label are deceptive, because if you read the ingredients on the BACK label, they are almost ALWAYS made of mostly refined soybean oil or canola oil as the main oil, with only a very small amount of actual olive oil as a secondary oil.
So here's how to avoid all of these horrendously unhealthy store-bought salad dressings and make your own quick and easy SUPER-healthy dressing...

My Quick and Easy Recipe for Super-Healthy Salad Dressing
Geary's Healthy-Fat Blend Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Fill your salad dressing container with these approximate ratios of liquids:

• 1/3rd of container filled with balsamic vinegar
• 1/3rd of container filled with apple cider vinegar
• fill the remaining 1/3rd of container with equal parts of extra virgin olive oil and "Udo's Choice EFA Oil Blend"
• Add just a small touch (approx 1 or 2 teaspoons) of real maple syrup
• Add a little bit of onion powder, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper and then shake the container to mix all ingredients well.

This homemade salad dressing mixture is delicious and healthy, and I pretty much never get tired of it!
The reason I choose to blend the extra virgin olive oil half & half with the Udo's Choice Oil is that they make up for what each lacks... Although extra virgin olive oil is healthy and contains important antioxidants, it is mostly monounsaturated, and is low in the essential fatty acids (EFAs). The Udo's Choice Oil is higher in unrefined polyunsaturated oils with a good healthy balance of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids.
There are several variations of the Udo's Choice Oil, and one of them (labeled DHA 3-6-9 Blend) even contains a DHA algae oil blended into the mix along with organic flax oil, coconut oil, evening primrose oil, rice bran oil, oat germ and bran oil, and a few others.
Overall, blending Udo's Oil with extra virgin olive oil makes nearly a perfect oil blend for salad dressings with a great taste and maximum health benefits.  If you can't find Udo's Choice Oil Blends (you can find Udo's at almost any health food store), there are other EFA oil blends on the market...just make sure that they are COLD-processed to protect the EFAs.  You should never heat an EFA oil blend.
Give this homemade super-healthy salad dressing a try!  You'll do your body a favor by avoiding the harmful additives in store-bought salad dressings.
Enjoy!

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New Study Reveals LIES about High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Does high-fructose corn syrup make you fatter than sugar?  See this new study and you decide...
by Mike Geary - Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Author of best-selling program:  The Truth about Six-Pack Abs

A "Corny" Lie?
Unless you've been under a rock for the last year or two, you've undoubtedly seen the massive media campaign that the Corn Refiners Association (the CRA) has been running on TV commercials, online ads, etc trying to "clean up" the poor public image of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS).
They have even tried a re-branding campaign trying to change the name to "corn sugar" instead of high-fructose corn syrup.
In addition, the TV commercials try to convince you that HFCS is "no worse than sugar", and even try to imply that it is somehow 'natural', with this phrase:
"It's made from corn, has no artificial ingredients, has the same calories as sugar and is okay to eat in moderation"
REALLY?  I'd say that it's a downright LIE to say that HFCS has no artificial ingredients if you've ever seen how HFCS is refined and processed and the chemicals involved in that process.  Watch the entertaining documentary King Corn and you'll see the NASTY chemicals involved in refining HFCS!
And let's not forget that HFCS is almost always made from Genetically Modified corn.  Not so "natural" anymore huh!
In response to this CRA propaganda campaign to revamp the image of HFCS, Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest stated: "High-fructose corn syrup starts out as cornstarch, which is chemically or enzymatically degraded to glucose and some short polymers of glucose. Another enzyme is then used to convert varying fractions of glucose into fructose... High-fructose corn syrup just doesn't exist in nature".
What about the debate:  Is High-Fructose Corn Syrup worse for you than sugar?
This seems to have been an ongoing debate for the last couple years, but I personally think it's a stupid debate...  In terms of your health and your waistline, they are BOTH pure evil!  Over time, with excess consumption of either HFCS or sugar, they can both lead to diabetes, obesity, and other major health problems, including premature aging, and a bulging belly!
However, with that said, I personally avoid HFCS at all costs, but I don't necessarily avoid sugar altogether. I minimize sugar greatly, but I don't avoid it like I avoid HFCS.  Have I mentioned that I haven't had a soda pop since I was a teenager... not one!  Two things that I try to avoid almost 100% are HFCS and trans fats... because they are easily two of the MOST evil food additives that cause the most damage from a biochemical standpoint internally in your body (keep that in mind when you're about to eat or drink them, and it's easy to say no).
The only HFCS I get is probably the minor amounts that I might get in ketchup at a restaurant (sorry, I'm not giving up my ketchup... but I do get organic ketchup at home, which has no HFCS).  But other than ketchup at a restaurant, I stay away from anything and everything with HFCS in it, including store-bought salad dressings which are often laced with high amounts of HFCS.  Instead, I make my own healthy lean-body salad dressings at home.
The reason that I avoid HFCS more than I avoid plain sugar is that there is just too much evidence at this point that your body DOES process HFCS differently than sugar... despite the propaganda that the Corn Refiners Association is trying to shove down your throat with their ads.
New Princeton Study reveals that HFCS can stimulate more weight gain than sugar
Leave it to those geniuses at Princeton to give us some good evidence that HFCS can make you fatter than sugar!  In a 2010 Princeton University study, researchers found that rats given water sweetened with HFCS gained significantly more weight than those given water sweetened with plain sugar, despite calorie intake being the same between both groups.
Princeton researchers also state:  "In addition to causing significant weight gain in lab animals, long-term consumption of high-fructose corn syrup also led to abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the abdomen, and a rise in circulating blood fats called triglycerides".
And what about those claims by the Corn Refiners Association that HFCS is "no worse than sugar"?  Well, let's get past the propaganda, and hear what an actual researcher has to say:
According to professor Bart Hoebel, who specializes in the neuroscience of appetite, weight and sugar addiction... "Some people have claimed that high-fructose corn syrup is no different than other sweeteners when it comes to weight gain and obesity, but our results make it clear that this just isn't true, at least under the conditions of our tests.  When rats are drinking high-fructose corn syrup at levels well below those in soda pop, they're becoming obese -- every single one, across the board. Even when rats are fed a high-fat diet, you don't see this; they don't all gain extra weight."
Princeton researchers also noted that the HFCS groups in the studies gained significant amounts of visceral fat around the belly.  As you might know, visceral fat is more deadly than subcutaneous fat and is a serious health concern as it releases inflammatory molecules into your system.
One reason that HFCS appears to cause more weight gain than plain sugar is that HFCS doesn't trigger a leptin response in the body.  This means that it won't signal the body to decrease appetite despite those HFCS calories that were consumed.
Another reason that HFCS affects our bodies differently is this... according to Princeton researchers, although HFCS only has 10% more fructose than table sugar (55% fructose content vs 50% fructose content in sugar), the fructose in HFCS is more sinister... According to Princeton, "as a result of the manufacturing process for high-fructose corn syrup, the fructose molecules in the sweetener are free and unbound, ready for fast absorption and utilization. In contrast, every fructose molecule in sucrose that comes from cane sugar or beet sugar is bound to a corresponding glucose molecule and must go through an extra metabolic step before it can be utilized."
Aha... very interesting!
Well, I hope that's enough evidence for you to simply try to fully avoid HFCS from now on.  Again, this doesn't mean eating loads of table sugar is good for you either (that should be obvious), but these studies clearly show that HFCS is at least one step WORSE for you than sugar.  And you also know that HFCS contributes to more abdominal fat, so with that said, why in the world would you ever want to touch another soda again!
You also now know that the deceptive advertisments by the Corn Refiners Association have basically been LYING to you with their propaganda that "HFCS is no worse for you than sugar".  Now you know the truth.
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Do Artificial Sweeteners (splenda, aspartame, etc) Make You Fat? Natural Alternatives Including Stevia

by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer
author: The Truth about Six-Pack Abs

I wanted to talk about artificial sweeteners today because I've noticed that there's a lot of confusion and misconceptions revolving around these non-caloric sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners and the huge list of products sweetened with them are marketed to you relentlessly as "healthy foods" or "healthier" than sugar or corn syrup sweetened products. But are they really?
Just to clarify, some of the most popular artificial sweeteners on the market today are:

• Splenda (sucralose)
• Aspartame
• Saccharine
• Acesulfame Potassium (aka - acesulfame K)

These artificial sweeteners are used in abundance in almost every "diet" drink, "lite" yogurts, puddings, and ice creams, most "low-carb" products, and almost all "reduced-sugar" products. Heck, even most protein powders are loaded with artificial sweeteners too (just look on the ingredients and you'll usually see one of them).
Splenda is probably one of the worst offenders of claiming to be "healthy" as they say that it's made from real sugar. Don't be fooled! It's still an artificial substance. What they don't tell you is that Splenda is actually a chemically modified substance where chlorine is added to the chemical structure, making it more similar to a chlorinated pesticide than something we should be eating or drinking.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions that I see all of the time and it saddens me to see so many people poisoning their family with dangerous artificial sweeteners like splenda, while falsely thinking they're doing something healthy.
The truth is that artificial sweeteners are not even close to being healthy, and as you'll discover in a minute, can easily be just as bad for you, if not worse, than sugar or corn syrup. Most people think that they are doing something good for themselves by choosing the "diet" drinks or "lite" yogurts compared to the sugar-laden versions, but the problem is that you're exposing yourself to a whole new set of problems with the artificially sweetened drinks and foods.
I know you're probably frustrated by all of the contradicting messages you hear each day about which foods are good for you and which are bad. I'm sure just today you probably saw some clever ad or commercial somewhere screaming health benefits for a food product that is loaded with artificial sweeteners. Don't worry. Just stick with me and I'll get past the marketing hype for you and decipher the truth. I'll also give you some ideas for great alternatives to artificial sweeteners as well as alternatives to sugar or corn syrup sweeteners.
The fact is, artificial sweeteners vs. sugar or corn syrup is really just a battle between two evils. Which evil is worse?
I'm sure you already know the problems with sugar or high fructose corn syrup sweetened products. The excess empty calories, blood sugar spike, and resulting insulin surge this creates in your body not only promotes fat gain, but also stimulates your appetite further, making things even worse.
On the other hand, artificial sweeteners save you calories, but there's growing evidence that they can increase your appetite for sweets and other carbohydrates causing you to eat more later in the day anyway. Therefore, you don't really save any calories at all. Also, studies have shown that artificial sweeteners can stimulate high insulin levels in your body too, which again can promote fat storage.
All of the 4 artificial sweeteners listed above are nasty chemicals that the human body is simply not meant to ingest. However, most of us are ingesting a whole lot of these chemicals on a daily basis. Aside from the problems I touched on so far, other health issues that have been related to artificial sweeteners in scientific studies as well as observations are:

• some have been linked to potential cancer risks
• negative effects on the liver, kidneys, and other organs
• stimulating cravings
• gastrointestinal problems
• developmental problems in children and fetuses
• headaches
• and too many more issues to list

Now some of the above potential health problems are definitely not proven as fact in studies. However, some of them have been shown in animal studies given high doses. Also, if you do some research, you'll find hoardes of people that attribute the use of artificial sweeteners over the years with all sorts of illnesses in themselves or in family members.
Regardless of the fact that any real health problems for actual human use are not proven yet, I don't know about you, but I'd rather protect myself and my family and steer clear of these possibly dangerous artificial chemicals.
Of course, despite all of the health issues potentially associated with artificial sweeteners, the companies that sell the products will continue to claim that they are fully safe. Don't believe them!  The bottom line is that the body was not designed to deal with foreign substances like artificial sweeteners. Take my word on that one.
So what are your options for alternatives?
Well, your best alternatives for sugar or corn syrup are either raw honey, organic maple syrup, or even a little-known high antioxidant syrup called sorghum syrup (common in the southern US). Even though these alternatives still have the same amount of calories as sugar or corn syrup... honey, organic maple syrup, and sorghum syrup actually provide some nutrients and antioxidants, so it's not just empty calories. Empty calories such as white refined sugar stimulate your appetite more because your body is lacking nutrients.
Now you're probably thinking that you'd like to still save on calories but avoid the nasty artificial sweeteners. Good news... You can!
You've probably seen me reference this natural sweetener in a lot of my recipes. It's called Stevia. I've been using it for years as an alternative sweetener when you still want to save a little on calories and sugar but don't want to harm your health with artificial sweeteners.
Stevia is not artificial like the other chemical sweeteners I mentioned above. Stevia is a natural non-caloric herb that's been used for thousands of years in some parts of the world. It is an herb and when dried into a powder, has a sweetness about 200-300 times stronger than sugar.
One problem I've noticed with using Stevia is that the pure powder is a very powerful sweetener, so you can easily use too much. However, I've found some good Stevia products that use a bulking agent added so that you can measure out the stevia powder in direct comparison to measuring sugar.
I've yet to see any negative reports or health concerns regarding stevia and only positive potential health benefits. After all, it's simply an herb as opposed to an artificial chemical derived in a lab.  I definitely give Stevia my seal of approval. Do yourself a favor (and your family), and if you are currently an artificial sweetener junkie, please consider switching to stevia.
More and more stevia products are available now even in many grocery stores.  One of the best stevia products I've found over the years is made by a company called Steviva. They have an excellent stevia product blended with another natural sweetener called erythritol. I suggest giving it a try! Just look for the "Steviva Blend". You can use it in your coffee or tea, to sweeten up plain yogurt, added to smoothies for extra sweetness, on cereals or oatmeal, in baking, or where ever else you might need a sweetener but want to reduce the sugar content.
If you want to grab some, here's the site: Stevia Blend
Well, that's it for today. I hope you enjoyed this important discussion. Feel free to copy/paste this link and email it to anybody you know that might be overdoing the artificial sweeteners.
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