A Better Bag of Groceries

The Thing About Salty Snacks

Thursday, January 26, 2012 at 07:15 AM

One of the things that I love best about NuVal is that we score everything – even categories that you don’t traditionally think of as “healthy.”  Like salty snacks.  Truth be told, I ♥ salty snacks.  I usually get a craving for something a little salty in around 3 or 4 pm.  Sometimes I satisfy that craving with some Triscuits (Original score a 32) and some hummus (Tribe Roasted Garlic hummus scores a 48).  But technically that’s not a “salty snack”.  Categorically speaking, that’s a “cracker” and a “refrigerated dip” in supermarket-speak. 

Today, I’m talking about salty snacks.  You know – the kind you put out when you’re having a birthday party.

Salty snacks range in score from 1 to 55 on the NuVal scale.  The average score is a 15.  Lay’s Classic Potato Chips score a 15. 

To find out more about what drives the scores in Salty Snacks, I checked in with the NuVal dietitians.  They really know their stuff!

Here’s what I found out:

• Salty Snack Scores can vary depending on the amount of sodium, saturated fat, unsaturated fat, and fiber the product contains.  Snacks with the lowest scores have highly varied fat and sodium content—between 0 to 9 grams of saturated fat and 30-540 mg of sodium.  Snacks with the highest scores have the most fiber, least sodium, and primarily use oils with the most unsaturated fatty acids.
• Snack scores at the top end of the scale often have lower sodium and saturated fat.
• Many of the snacks with the highest scores are made with whole grains which contain dietary fiber. Some of the higher scoring products also contain flax seed which is a great source of omega-3 fatty acids.

• Sugars can be found in snacks like coated pretzels, caramel flavored corn pops, popcorn, nuts, and kettle corns. Many snack foods combine the classic combination of sweet and salty so remember to check the NuVal score which can pick up on the snacks with added sugars.

I got more info from the NuVal dietitians on what to look out for.  The dietitians comments are very professional and in regular text.  My comments are in italics (and they are a little more off-the-cuff!)

Stuff to Watch Out For:

• Snacks made of primarily of whole grains, such as whole kernel corn, sweet potatoes, or soy flour rank in the upper 50 percent of salty snacks on the NuVal scale. Avoid snacks with pork rinds, corn meal, corn starch, sugar and/or corn syrup listed as one of the first ingredients as these foods are more likely to have high saturated fat, sodium, and/or sugar levels as well as may contain trans fats. (OK – I will definitely watch out for anything containing pork rinds!  Bleech!)

• Although many of the salty snacks have 0 grams trans fat listed on the nutrition facts label, some products list partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredient list. Though there may not be enough trans fats to required it listed on the label (manufacturers can round down anything under less than .5 grams to zero), NuVal helps you spot the better choices by assigning products with trans fats with a lower score. (OK – this one always amazes me.  So there can still be up to .49 grams of trans fat in a product, but it might not be listed on the label.  That’s why you have to look at the ingredient list for partially hydrogenated oil!  Really?  See – that’s why we need NuVal everywhere!  NuVal captures both the Nutrition Facts Panel and the ingredient list.)

• While “Vegetable Chips” may seem like the healthier option because of their name, they may not necessarily be your best snacking choice. These products can range from a score of 46 (Terra Exotic Vegetable Chips)  to a score of 25 (Flat Earth Garlic & Herb Field Baked Veggie Chips).  The main differences in vegetable chips lie in the first few ingredients—the highest ranking products have vegetables as the first ingredient while the lowest have rice flour, potato flakes, and corn oil as their first. The NuVal system can help you to read beyond the catch phrases and trendy fad words to truly assess the nutritional value of a product. (I have this argument with my daughter all the time.  She is always trying to get me to buy veggie chips because after all, Mom, they are VEGETABLES!)

• While pretzels are praised for their lack of fat, they provide little-to-no positive nutritional value and therefore score low on the NuVal scale. The primary ingredients in pretzels are wheat flour, sodium, and sometimes partially hydrogenated oils which provide little beneficial nutrition. Instead, look for snacks made with whole grains and not hydrogenated oils.  (Yes, this one, to me is a bummer.  I ♥ pretzels.  But most run-of-the-mill pretzels score below a 10.  You can find some that score higher.  Such as Snyder’s of Hanover Multigrain Pretzel Sticks, which score a 29).

So, that’s the thing about Salty Snacks. 

Question of the Day

What’s your favorite Salty Snack?

Posted by: Melissa 11 comments

Posted in: Salty Snacks

Tags: chips, Pretzels, Salty Snacks