Vegetable crisps might seem like a “healthy” alternative if you’re trying to improve your diet, but in reality, they’re often worse for you than regular crisps.
A new review has uncovered that a bag of vegetable crisps can contain just two-thirds of vegetables, with the remainder largely made up of salt and oil.
In these instances, a 40g bag of vegetable crisps can have more fat than a 40g serving of salted Pringles and nearly double that found in a Mars bar.
A leading nutritionist has warned veg crisps, as well as other foods incorrectly “perceived to be healthy”, may be fuelling the obesity crisis.
The research was carried out by Wren Kitchens and registered nutritionist Charlotte Stirling-Reed.
With 27% of adults in England classified as obese and a further 36% overweight, the team aimed to uncover the nutritional values of foods perceived to be “healthy alternatives”.
They looked at the popular veg crisps Tyrrells Mixed Root Vegetable Crisps (40g) as an example and compared the fat content to snacks they believe are perceived to be unhealthy.
Their research found the Tyrrells bags contained 14.3g of fat, which is more fat than in a 51g Mars bar and a 52g Krispy Kreme doughnut.
Commenting on the findings, nutritionist Charlotte Stirling-Reed said: “The concern with products that are often seen as ‘healthier alternatives’, such as vegetable crisps, is they don’t always match up to their reputations.
“Crisps are crisps, and even if they are made with vegetables, they are likely to contain too much in the way of fat, saturated fat and salt. In fact, the vegetable crisps here have higher levels of saturated fat and salt than some well-known, regular crisp brands.
“As a nutritionist, I’ve seen this first hand in weight loss clinics where clients may eat even as much as double a portion size of a product if it’s perceived to be healthy.”
In response to the study, a Tyrrells crisps spokesperson told HuffPost UK: “Tyrrells hand cooked crisps, operates in the more indulgent world of snack food and the guiding rule for all of our products is never compromising on great taste or flavour.
“Our hand cooked crisps are a special treat to be enjoyed rather than a healthy snack. On all packs we recommend ‘individual portion’ sizes, so consumers can enjoy our crisps as part of a healthy balanced diet.”