5 “Healthy Foods” that Could Be Causing Weight Gain

If you live or follow a healthy eating lifestyle, you might think you’re being healthy when you consume these foods, but really they could be causing weight gain. We also know how hard it can be to choose healthy foods that are actually healthy and aren’t full of unpronounceable ingredients. Or why you’d assume low-calorie or low-fat would mean it’s healthy, but really it’s not. It’s why we put together this list of healthy foods that could be ruining your weight.  

Pre-made Smoothies Could Be Causing You to Gain Weight

If you’re trying to maximize your morning breakfast time, you might think you’re making the right call with premade smoothies from the freezer section in the grocery store. But you could be choosing wrong. 

While most smoothies are nutritious and healthy, others are secretly filled with excess calories and sugar. Some pre-made smoothies contain nearly 14 teaspoons of sugar in one package! And with smoothies, it’s easy and quick to consume. But that can be a problem if it's packed with sugar because you’ll have a sugar crash soon after. 

Low-Fat Flavored Yogurt Could Be Causing You to Gain Weight

Our body needs fats and fat is a macronutrient that fills us up while also adding flavor to food (olive oil, avocados, nuts, etc). But when fat is removed from foods, companies need to replace the nutrient with something else. With low-fat yogurts, the substitute is usually added sugars to give yogurts the flavor that fat would usually do. For example, 1 cup of Yoplait low-fat vanilla yogurt has over 7 teaspoons of sugar. And we all know that high sugar content isn’t healthy food. 

Juices Could Be Causing You to Gain Weight

Do you know what’s also high in sugar content that could be causing your weight gain? Fresh pressed juices. This isn’t true of all fresh-pressed juices, but most of them are high in sugar and calories. It’s why reading the labels on the foods you consume is so important! If you’re not willing to give up juice in your diet, try drinking non-starchy veggies like spinach and kale and low-sugar fruits like lemon and lime to control the sugar and calorie intake. 

Dried Fruit Could Be Causing You to Gain Weight

If you’re getting your serving of daily fruits from dried fruit, you could be unknowingly consuming too much sugar. Dried fruit can be seen as a healthy food since, after all, it is fruit and has the fiber, vitamins, and minerals you need. 

But dried fruit is preserved typically with sugar, which is why dried fruit has such high sugar content. When comparing the same amount of dried fruit to fresh fruit, dried fruit has more sugar and calories than its fresh fruit equivalent. While dried fruit is more convenient, sticking to fresh fruits is a healthier option. 

Flavored Coffee Could Be Causing You to Gain Weight

At Wayt Nutrition, we love starting our day with a cup of coffee or getting an iced coffee as an afternoon pick-me-up. But depending on the one you chose, you can be a victim of excess calories and sugar. While plain black coffee can have many health benefits, adding flavors and extras to your coffee can counteract those benefits. 

Let’s look at a popular drink from Starbucks, since most people across the country frequent the coffee shop or have one nearby. A Starbucks Grande Cinnamon Dolce Latte with nonfat milk and no foam is 340 calories and 40 grams of sugar. Now compared to a Grande Nonfat Latte with no foam, you’d consume almost half the calories (190 calories) and sugar (18 grams)!  

If you’re looking for an alternative to these sugary drinks and meals, try our supplements!

Instead of a sugary fresh-pressed juice, try our Organic Greens supplement to get your full serving of vegetables. One scoop is only 22 calories and there’s no sugar.