• Choosing the Healthiest Foods for Your Family

    Welcome! I am a mom of a busy 8 year old and an adventurous 6 year old. I also happen to work for a great company called NuVal. NuVal is a nutritional scoring system that rates foods on a scale of 1-100, based on how nutritious they are. We are implementing NuVal in grocery stores around the country.

    NuVal may not be in your area yet. But I see the scores while they are "hot off the press" and because of that I am able to make better decisions about what to feed my family.

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  • Disclaimer

    I am not a registered dietitian. I am just a mom who happens to work for NuVal. I am also an AFAA-certified Group Exercise Instructor. NuVal is a system designed to lead customers to the most nutritious food choices. It is not a diet or weight-loss plan. Before starting a diet, you should always consult your personal physician. The opinions expressed in this blog are the opinions of the writer and not the opinions of NuVal LLC.

The Potato Chip Challenge

Friday, September 11, 2009 at 09:08 AM

I remember that before I had kids, I always wondered why Moms made such a big deal about the busy-ness of the first week of school. I mean, really, it’s not like the Moms had to go to school – just the kids. What is the big deal, I thought? Now that I am a Mom of a 1st grader and Pre-K-er, I know that it’s both an exciting and stressful week. I am oh-so-happy that it is Friday because I am tired. So, I’ve decided to take a break from blogging today and direct you to a great post today on It’s Not About Nutrition: The Art & Science of Teaching Kids to Eat Right. She talks about how as parents we think that pretzels or fat free Fig Newtons are better for you than potato chips, and guess what? They’re not! That’s right. Check out these NuVal scores:

Lay’s Potato Chips Classic … 23
Rold Gold Pretzel Rods … 14
Nabisco Fig Newtons Fat Free …13

And how do you think Baked Lay’s score? Find out in Dina Rose’s post The Potato Chip Challenge: How We Decide What Snacks We Give Our Kids.

And Happy Friday Everyone!

Posted by: Melissa 3 comments

Posted in: snacks

Tags: ,

3 Comments on “The Potato Chip Challenge”

  1. #1 Anonymous
    on Sep 11th, 2009 at 10:24 am

    I found this fascinating. My kids (and husband–OK and me too)will be so excited that potato chips are better for you than pretzels and Fat Free Fig Newtons. I always had a preconceived notion that potato chips were the most unhealthy snacks. It's great that NuVal can displace some of these incorrect assuptions and give us the tools to help feed out kids more nutritiously. Not that potato chips should be the food of choice always, but it's nice to know if you are craving something crunchy and salty, potato chips are a good treat once in a while. I can stop forcing the pretzel rods upon my children. I love your blog and read it faithfully. Thanks!

  2. #2 Holly B
    on Sep 11th, 2009 at 10:18 pm

    They probably have less or no hydrogenated oils depending on brand, so from that perspective (which I feel is far more important than the simplified fiber + protein content view)I chose the fig cookie

  3. #3 April
    on Sep 12th, 2009 at 10:05 pm

    I always knew chips were good for you! Casey will be thrilled. Curious about granola bars, kashi vs fiber one

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