A Kid's Energy Bar for Lunch Boxes and Adults

June 8, 2010   7 Comments

I was first introduced to these bars on a tour of a supermarket with a nutritionist. "THESE are great bars!", she said. I was skeptical.

Why? Because, I dislike energy bars. First of all, they never give me energy and secondly they are packed with sugar. But, I received this e-mail:

Please help me to find a healthy snack-bar for my kindergarten kid's lunch box. She loves strawberry Special K bars, but I fear you will tell me their evils. We need a nut-free choice. Most schools are nut free and I am spending an hour per shopping trip reading labels to insure their are no traces of nuts or made in a plant which processes nuts since a child at our school has the severest form of allergy and all lunches are monitored.

Thanks from a USA Mom in the Cayman Islands (come for a visit!)

Ummm, where is my plane ticket??

She is right about my review of Special K bars. I don't like them because they aren't whole grain. You can do better than a Special K Bar.

Okay, so I went back to the store and found these Clif Kid ZBars. They cost about 80 cents each. Unlike my favorite bars Lara Bar, Chunks of Energy and KIND Bar Review , these don't have ANY nuts. (But, they do say MAY CONTAIN TRACES OF PEANUTS AND TREE NUTS on the package so maybe they still won't work for our Mom in the Caymans.)

But, they might work for other parents out there who need a nut free choice. The good thing about them is that they are whole grain and only 120-130 calories so they are a great size for a kid snack or an adult snack. Remember that Lara Bar and KIND Bar Review run over 220 calories for a bar.

Also, they don't have artificial colors, flavors, or the dreaded high fructose corn syrup - but they do have 10 grams of sugar per serving. That is the same amount as a Gogurt Review.

I like to think of these as oatmeal cookies in a cool package. They are a MUCH better choice than 3 Oreos, but not as great as Apples.

My kids really liked them, but I didn't. They are okay in a pinch, but to me they tasted like a crappy cookie. I suppose I taste the lack of butter and eggs.

You can also make your own energy bars see: Energy Bar Recipe or choose from other packaged snacks with less sugar like GoGo squeeZ, Doctor Kracker, and Peeled Snacks.

This whole NUT allergy thing isn't easy for parents, because nuts are super nutritious and peanut butter is a staple. I hope to find other healthy packaged choices to make parent's lives easier (I could certainly use them!).

Does anyone have a good suggestion for our Mom in the Caymans?

Want to read about snacks?
A Little Ranch Dressing Isn't Gonna Kill Ya
Is a GoGurt a Healthy Go or a Junk Food No?
DIY Popsicles: A Happy, Healthy Snack
When It Heats Up Try This Simple Zero Calorie Drink