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Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Healthy Habits - Nutritional Value of US and EU Snacks

 Snacks, whether for a quick energy boost or a treat, play a significant role in our diets. However, not all snacks are created equal, especially when comparing those from different regions.

 
With the expertise of Sandra Vigelienė, who holds a degree in Global Nutrition and Health, our team evaluated various snacks from the European Union and the United States.
 
We examined the differences in beneficial ingredients like dietary fiber and protein and those whose consumption should be limited, such as added sugars, sodium, and saturated fats.
 
We selected 10 of the most popular snacks for our analysis, considering their sales volumes in European and American markets.
 
 
Key Highlights:
  • Servings and calories. Serving sizes differ between U.S. and EU snacks. With U.S. snack servings being higher, there is a potential for excessive consumption of calories from processed foods.
  • Sodium. Sodium content in U.S. snacks tends to be higher compared to EU counterparts.
  • Saturated fatty acids (SFAs). SFA levels and other unfavorable ingredients, such as saturated fats, added sugar, and salt, seem to be higher in sweet snacks and EU snacks tend to have lower SFA levels than U.S. ones.
  • Total sugar. The total sugar content in both EU and U.S. snacks is relatively high. Some U.S. snacks may have a higher total sugar content per serving.
  • Dietary fiber. EU snacks do not provide dietary fiber amounts on the label, while the dietary fiber content of the evaluated U.S. snacks seems to be low.
  • Protein. Both EU and U.S. snacks contain similar protein amounts per serving, however, the amounts would not significantly contribute to daily recommended intakes.
  • Micronutrients. EU snacks do not provide micronutrient (vitamin and mineral) composition on nutrition labels. U.S. snacks only show percent Daily Value percentage (%DV). However, considering the overall nutritional composition, these snacks are not an optimal source of micronutrients.
 
 
For more information and to view the full report, visit:

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