Top 10 Unhealthiest Snacks in America

We could start by talking about how the gelatin in most gummy candy is derived from collagen taken from the skin and bones of animals. But while that might be enough for some people to stop eating them, for the rest of us the amount of sugar and artificial ingredients should at least get us to slow down our inhalation of these bouncy treats. As an example, Starburst Air Gummies have 100 calories and 20 grams of sugar per serving. That’s quite a bit. But this is also where we tell you that one serving equals 6 gummies. When’s the last time you ate just 6 gummies?

If you’re looking for a protein boost then there’s no doubt that a Clif Bar can provide it. With 10 grams of protein per bar, that’s a solid amount for a quick and easy snack. The problem comes if you’re using them as a snack rather than as a supplement to your hard workout. And the issue comes in the form of about 250 calories and 17g of sugar per bar which, if you aren’t working out hard, is a heck of a lot of each. Especially if you aren’t a regular at the gym, there are many better ways to get your protein without the extra calories and sugars these bars provide as well.

Look, we get it. For many of us it’s almost impossible to watch a movie without a bowl of popcorn in front of us. And on its own, popcorn is actually a rather healthy snack choice with 3 cups of the stuff providing a solid fiber kick and barely more than 90 calories. However, you’ll notice that we’re not talking about plain popcorn here. This is Orville Redenbacher's Pour Over Movie Theater Butter Popcorn. Instead of 90 calories you’re looking at 180. And instead of 1.1 grams of fat, Redenbacher's buttered product throws 14g at you, along with 330 mg of sodium. That’s a big difference, and makes sticking to the plain stuff well worth your body’s while.

#7: Hot Pockets

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Top 20 Unhealthiest Snacks

While we love Hot Pockets for being the impetus for the classic Jim Gaffigan stand-up routine, we suggest you just watch that bit over and over again every time you have a craving for these unhealthy snacks. We can start by talking about the enriched flour and processed meats that provide very little, if any nutritional value. And as for the numbers, it ain’t pretty. Each Hot Pocket will fill you with over 300 calories, around 15 grams of fat and roughly 700 grams of sodium. And if your typical snacktime is two of them, then just double those numbers. These are high numbers for a full on meal - let alone a mid day nosh.

If the only issue with Cheetos was the orange fingerprints one leaves everywhere after snack time then we’d say go for it - T-Shirts and couches be damned. But unfortunately, the powdered fingers are the least of our worries when it comes to these puffy snacks. You probably assumed they weren’t super healthy given the their bright, artificial-looking orange color - and you would be correct. And besides the “Artificial Color [Yellow 6]” listed in their ingredients, you’ll also find stuff like “Monosodium Glutamate”. Yup, there’s MSG in Cheetos. One serving (only 17 cheetos) also provides you with 160 calories, 10g of fat and 270mg of sodium. Dangerously cheesy indeed.

The idea that Twinkies and cockroaches would be the only things to survive a nuclear war is just an urban legend (at least as far as Twinkies go). In their packaging, Twinkies have a shelf life of about 25 days and are not filled with nuclear-level preservatives. However, whether they’ve been sitting on the shelf for 25 days or 25 years, they are really, really unhealthy. Starting with the 32g of sugar per 2 Twinkies - which shouldn’t shock anyone given that the first ingredient on the packaging is “sugar” - and a little farther down the list is “High Fructose Corn Syrup.” To that we can also add 370mg of sodium, 9g of fat, 47g of carbohydrates and a whopping 280 calories.

#4: Pop-Tarts

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Top 10 Unhealthiest Food in America

We totally understand the convenience factor when it comes to a Pop-Tarts snack. They’re super quick (even quicker if you eat them right out of the packaging as many do). But, we do need to warn you, they are also super unhealthy. To go along with the enriched flour, Pop-Tarts are made with not one - but three kinds of sugar: corn syrup, refined white sugar and high-fructose corn syrup. One serving of two Pop-Tarts can have between 15 to over 30g of sugar (depending on the flavor and whether you choose frosted or unfrosted). But, if you’re really trying to count your calories, unfrosted is definitely the way to go.

It isn’t exactly surprising that spreadable chocolate isn’t healthy for you, but it has nuts in it, so that makes up for it right? . In fact, it really isn’t healthy at all when it comes right down to it. We should also start by mentioning that a serving of Nutella is described as 1 tablespoon and contains 110 calories, 11g of sugar and 6g of fat. Now consider how many tablespoons worth you consume in one sitting and multiply those numbers by said amount. That’s when things start to get real scary.

We could argue about the best way to eat an Oreo (Do you dunk it in milk? Do you open it up and eat the cream first?). However, while there are valid arguments on all sides of the ‘how to eat an Oreo’ debate, there’s only one side to the ‘are Oreos healthy” conversation. And that side is unfortunately…. Unhealthy. Now, if you can limit yourself to one single Oreo cookie every now and then, it wouldn’t be too terrible, with each cookie containing a little over 2g of fat and just under 5g of sugar. However, along with there being pretty much zero nutritional value to Oreos - for most of us a typical serving lands closer to one full sleeve than one full cookie.

Potato Chips might just be the most popular go to snack. Most of us probably have an open bag of our favorite flavor in the cupboard right now (if not sitting open on the table beside you at this very moment). It’s true that potato chips are made with potatoes and potatoes provide nutritional value in the form of vitamin C and potassium - among others. But when it comes to chips, those positives are pretty easily outweighed by the higher-than-desired fat and sodium numbers. And potato chips are another snack that you really need to pay attention to serving size. What starts out as a simple handful of chips can quickly escalate into whole or multiple bags if you’re not careful! Which of these unhealthy snacks are you going to stop eating and which will you never be able to give up? Let us know in the comments