The Snack Trap: What You Don't Know About Snacks Could Hurt You

Cindy was on a mission to feed her daughter - and herself - healthier snacks. So she filled her shopping cart with yogurt drinks, granola bars and fruit roll-ups and nixed the potato chips, puddings and cookies. What she didn't know is that she was getting more sugar, food dyes and fats than she bargained for.

Navigating the food aisles for healthy snacks is more challenging than it seems. Misleading labels can make a less-than-mediocre choice look like a nutritional gem.

Check out the following snack traps to see how you can make improvements.

Yogurt/yogurt drinks
The fact is:

• Most yogurts are made with high-fructose corn syrup.
• Many have food coloring or dyes.
• Sugar content can equal five or more teaspoons per 4-ounce serving.
• Most offer only about 100 mg of calcium, the amount in 1/3 cup of milk.

Healthier choices:

• Look for brands without high-fructose corn syrup or artificial dyes.
• Mix a half cup of plain yogurt (or cottage cheese) with a half cup of flavored, to cut sugar.
• Take the whole top portion off a yogurt with fruit on the bottom. It's still sweet and delicious, without the extra goopy sugar calories at the bottom!
• Try homemade smoothies: blend a natural yogurt with frozen fruit and a little skim milk for a nutritious treat.

Fruit juice
The fact is:

• Even if it's 100 percent juice, the sugar content is the same as soda.
• It contains no fiber.
• Many brands contain high-fructose corn syrup.

Healthier choices:

• Choose water or low-fat milk to quench thirst.
• Dilute juice with extra water to cut back on overall sugar content.
• Eat fresh fruit!

Granola bars
The fact is:

• Many are glorified candy bars.
• Although fat is typically low, they are usually high in sugar and low in fiber.

Healthier choices:

• Look for brands with no more than 10 grams of sugar (and no high-fructose corn syrup) per bar.
• Look for a minimum of 3 grams of fiber per serving.
• Try nuts instead, such as crunchy almonds, peanuts in or out of the shell, or pistachio nuts.

Cheese and crackers
The fact is:

• Most cheeses are loaded with saturated or trans fats and are high in calories.
• Most crackers are also either high in fat, have added sugar or are made with refined flour (no fiber).

Healthier choices:

• Look for reduced-fat cheddar and other brands.
• Try low-fat string cheese.
• Buy whole-grain crackers, with 2 grams to 3 grams of fiber per serving.
• Try plain or flavored rice cakes with a smear of peanut butter.

Processed fruit snacks (fruit leather)
The fact is:

• They contain corn syrup, sugar and partially hydrogenated oils.
• They also have artificial flavors and food dyes.
• They contain no real fruit to speak of.
• They have no fiber.

Healthier choices:

• Look for natural, organic brands.
• Fresh fruit, always!
• Get dried fruit, such as apricots, plums and apples.
• Use natural apple sauce.

Snack crackers, pretzels, graham crackers
The fact is:

• Although better than fatty potato or fried corn chips, they are made with white, nutrient-depleted flour.
• They have very little fiber.
• They may have some hydrogenated fats.

Healthier choices:

• Try plain or flavored rice cakes.
• Buy baked corn tortilla chips, or tortilla chips made without hydrogenated fat.
• Serve 100 percent whole-grain crackers.