Hidden Sources of Fat, Sodium and Sugar

You've probably heard the saying that that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

This is what happens when we delude ourselves into thinking that natural foods have less calories and fats then others, or mistaking too much of one particularly healthy food (cheese is a good example) for a healthy choice.

Here is a breakdown of the ten most common food choices that contain hidden sources of fat and sugar (and therefore weight expanding calories!)

Here are the Top Ten Foods that will minimize your nutrition but maximize your waistline!

1. Cheese Pizza - A pizza that has no toppings seems like it should be healthier and it is to some extent. However just two slices of plain cheese pizza will provide you with 760 calories and almost a full day's limit of saturated fat and sodium. That's without sausage, pepperoni and anything else! Your best choice is a vegetarian pizza, such as foccacia brushed with olive oil and flavored with sun dried tomatoes and herbs.

2. Canned chicken noodle soup - Brimming with salt, a half a can averages about 1100 mg of sodium. That's almost half your daily quota. Go for the low-sodium brands instead.

3. Low Fat Potato Chips - The worst are the low fat chips fried in Olean (olestra). This indigestible fat substitute's generic name is called sucrose polyester Olean doesn't provide any calories, but in many people it causes gastrointestinal distress including severe cramps or diarrhea that they had to see their doctor. Olean also reduces the body's absorption of other foods. Try baked, low-fat potato or tortilla chips, or raw veggies like carrots and celery instead.

4. Yogurt covered raisins - This is a common offering in health food stores and it sounds healthy because raisins are a source of iron and yogurt is a common health food. Actually yogurt covered raisins are full of fat and sugar. They are usually coated with saturated sugar palm oil, or hydrogenated coconut oil. You'd be better off to snack on a handful of plain raisins.

5. Corn chips - Most people think corn chips are healthy because they are not made from potatoes. However the coconut oil that these are fried in is twice as saturated as lard. A cup of corn chips will give you almost half of your daily limit for saturated fat. If you must have corn chips look for brands that are baked or low fat.

6. Fast food bagel sandwiches - These can seem healthy because they include healthy vegetables such as tomatoes and lettuce and low fat meats such a turkey or chicken. However the bagels themselves are full of carbs. Just one of these sandwiches can yield up to 700 calories, 40 grams of fat, 300 mg of cholesterol and 1600 mg of sodium. Try a turkey sandwich on rye bread with 1 slice of cheese, lettuce and tomato instead.

7. Extra large chocolate chip cookies - You might lose weight eating just one single cookie but it depends how big it is. A single large cookie, like the ones sold in Starbucks, has more than 300 calories and as much saturated fat as a 12-ounce sirloin steak plus 7 teaspoons of sugar. If you can't resist, try going for the oatmeal cookies.

8. The Breakfast Special - Restaurant skillet-style breakfasts that include eggs, home fries, bacon, sausage and cheese - is not exactly the healthiest choice out there, considering the meal alone will give you 1220 calories, 70 grams of fat (19 of them saturated) and 1820 mgs of sodium. For a healthier alternative, try a couple of scrambled eggs or egg whites with 2 or 3 pancakes or toast and small side of fruit and cottage cheese.

9. "Supersize Me" French Fries - Stop saying yes when you are asked if you want your order to be supersized. Large French fries contain 600 calories, 30 grams of fat (16gms of which are the artery-clogging saturated plus trans fats!) A super-sized waistline is what you'll get for super-sizing your fries at the fast food joint. A baked potato is a better choice.

10. Mocha Latte with whole milk - This is actually more like a heated milkshake packed with 600 calories and 15 grams of saturated fat. Forsake the whipped cream for skim milk instead and you'll save up to 200 calories

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