7 Diet-Food Rip-offs

7. Worst Hot Cereal

Quaker Instant Raisin & Spice (1 packet)

150 calories
2 g fat (0 g unsaturated)
14 g sugars

Somebody must have been sleeping at the FDA the day Quaker was approved to carry this oversized heart-health logo on its box. Sure, it's low in saturated fat and cholesterol, but it's absolutely teeming with sugar. One bowl has more sugar than a scoop of Edy's Slow Churned Rocky Road Ice Cream. Your best bet is to stick with Quaker's old-fashioned oats and sweeten it yourself with fruit, but if you're set on the single-serving packets, go with the Lower Sugar variety. It provides just as much fiber with a mere fraction of the sugar.

Eat This Instead!

Quaker Lower Sugar Apples & Cinnamon (1 packet)

6. Worst Yogurt

Yoplait 99% Fat Free Strawberry (1 container, 170 g)

170 calories
1.5 g fat (1 g saturated)
26 g sugars

Just look at the ingredient list to see the true picture. After milk, sugar is the next ingredient. Scroll down the list a little and you'll find high-fructose corn syrup, too. So sure it's "99% fat free," but it also has more sugar than an entire Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar. Fage's is plenty sweet, but more of its sugar comes from real fruit. Plus it justifies the sugar with 17 grams of protein—more than 3 times as much as you'll find in Yoplait's yogurt.

Eat This Instead!

Fage 2% Strawberry

140 calories
2.5 g fat (1.5 g saturated)

16 g sugars110 calories
1.5 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
6 g sugar

5. Worst Reduced-Calorie Ice Cream Novelty

Breyers Carb Smart Almond Bar (1 bar)

180 calories
15 g fat (10 g saturated)
5 g sugars

The fact that this bar has only 5 grams of sugar is commendable, but the fact that it contains half your day's saturated-fat limit is not. Instead, look for a treat like Slim a Bear that puts a cap on both sugar and fat. Not only does that protect your heart, but it also diminishes your calorie impact.

Eat This Instead!

Klondike Slim a Bear No Sugar Added Ice Cream Sandwiches (1 sandwich)

100 calories
2 g fat (1 g saturated)
3 g sugars

4. Worst Nutrition Bar

PowerBar Fruit Smoothie Energy, Berry Blast (1 bar)

220 calories
3.5 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
27 g sugars

Not only does it contain virtually zero fiber, but the first ingredient is evaporated cane juice, otherwise known as sugar. Switch to Kashi's GoLean Crunchy! and you'll earn a touch more protein and a ton more fiber. Plus, you'll drop your sugar load by almost half.
 

Eat This Instead!

Kashi GoLean Crunchy! Chocolate Caramel (1 bar)

150 calories
3 g fat (2 g saturated)
14 g sugar

3. Worst Wheat Bread

Arnold Whole Grains Health Nut (2 slices)

240 calories
4 g fat (0 g saturated)
4 g fiber

Don't blow your calories on the bread; save them for the nutrient-dense stuff you're going to stuff inside. Arnold's Whole Grains Health Nut earns the Worst Bread distinction by being high in calories and carrying a load of refined flour. Make your sandwiches on Nature's Own Double Fiber Wheat instead and you'll eliminate 140 calories and double your fiber intake.

Eat This Instead!

Nature’s Own Double Fiber Wheat (2 slices)

2. Worst Smoothie

Smoothie King Banana Boat (40 oz)

1,048 calories
24 g fat (12 g saturated)
154 g sugars

There's a health halo hanging over everything smoothie-related, which makes it seem as though you can do no damage in the smoothie shop. Truth is, you can. Case in point: Smoothie King's Banana Boat. It sounds healthy enough, but it's made with ice cream and served from a mammoth-size cup. It also packs in more sugar than 8 Twinkies. Make it a rule to never drink out of anything bigger than Smoothie King's 20-ounce cup, and then do yourself a favor by ordering the Youth Fountain.
 

Eat This Instead!

Smoothie King Youth Fountain (20 oz)

253 calories
0 g fat

54 g sugars100 calories
1 g fat (0 g saturated)
10 g fiber

1. Worst Salad

Applebee's Santa Fe Chicken Salad (Full)

1,290 calories
92 g fat (24 g saturated)
3,500 mg sodium

It's time to shake your belief in the unbounded goodness of greens. Sure, leafy vegetables are good for you, but not when they're encumbered by fried tortilla strips and a reckless deluge of ranch dressing. In the 15 minutes it takes you to eat this salad, you'll take in more than a day's worth of sodium and saturated fat along with two-thirds of your day's worth of calories.
 

Eat This Instead!

Grilled Steak Caesar Salad (Half)

460 calories
34 g fat (8 g saturated)
920 mg sodium