By: Dana Magee

When looking for a healthy option for a snack that will be sure to satisfy your hunger many people turn to “bars”.  By bars I mean of the granola, fruit and nut, crunch, peanut butter, or protein variety.  Whether you are waiting for the end of a long workday, out for a bike ride, or getting hungry after your lunch break was replaced by afternoon meetings there are a lot of bars out there to choose from to hold you over. Since they all are saying they are the best one to choose what should you be looking for?  A good healthy choice of a “bar” should be low in sugar, high in protein, high in fiber, low in sodium, and have good fats incorporated.

The Think Thin Crunch bars that I recently sampled are a good example of the type of bar that nutritionists would be proud of.  This bar starts with about 70% less sugar then other leading fruit and nut bars out there.  With only about 4g of sugar, compared to competitors at about 13 g, this bar is off to a great start. The protein in this bar also greatly surpasses the leading bar with 10g of protein to keep you satisfied and away from snacking on foods that are high in calories and low in nutritional value.  The 4g of fiber in this bar will also help to keep you fuller longer.  This bar is packed with peanuts, almonds, and cashews which are all sources of “good” and heart- healthy fats.   Aside from the nutritional make up of this bar is it also a good option for those that are gluten intolerant.  Overall the Think Thin Crunch bar is a good choice as a grab and go snack to keep you moving and keep you eating healthy!