Nature valley salted caramel protein bar

food
#1

Me and my husband are confused and I’m looking to clear up some of the confusion.
So I always thought net carbs was carbs minus fibre. So some nuts might be 10g carbs but 6g fibre so 4g net carbs.

When I have done Keto in the past I have done it clean and to the letter, my husband likes to max his carb allowance, sweet tooth, processed wraps, fake pasta etc all that sort of thing, he can’t get ‘into it’, finds it punishment so always looking for a good cheat.

Anyway, there’s these nature valley salted caramel protein bars. 9g carbs, 5g fibre per bar. So is this fine to eat occasionally? Is it 4g net carbs or is it 9g? I ate one today and it just tasted so sweet that it was like too good to be true to be fairly Keto friendly.

Grateful for input from the pros and those in the know!

Thanks!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #2

Okay. How you figure this depends on where you live. In the U.S. and Canada, “carbohydrate” on the nutritional label means total carbohydrate, and you can subtract the fibre from that number to get the net carbs. Elsewhere in the world, “carbohydrate” means net carbohydrate already. If you ever subtract and get a negative number, that’s why.

One sure way to tell the difference is that, in Europe and Britain, nutrition labels are required to have a table listing amounts per 100 g, whether or not they have a second one with amounts per serving. This eliminates some of the shenanigans U.S. manufacturers are legally allowed to get away with.

In North America, I believe they have started requiring the label to say “total carbohydrate,” and that helps as well. In the U.S., however, manufacturers are allowed to determine their own serving size, and if the amount of sugar per serving is less than 0.5 g, they can legally say 0 g of sugar. (If it’s under 1 g, they can say simply “less than 1 g.”) This means that you should always check the list of ingredients for sugars, and if you find any, then multiply the number of servings you’re actually going to eat by 0.499999999 (or 0.999999, as the case may be), and you’ll likely be safe. At least, any surprises are more likely to be pleasant ones, that way.

If the bar is truly only 4 g of net carbohydrate, then you can probably be okay eating it. However, if it’s 9 g net, then I’d think twice, if it were me.

#3

Ah ok, I did not know that. Thank you for explaining.

I am based in the uk so I guess the bar is 9g net carbs as that is what is on the label as ‘carbohydrate’. Now I know I’ll steer clear of them in future. I think I prefer just embracing it and enjoying it for what it is anyway rather than trying to cheat all the time and push it to the limit every day so I’ll go back to my way of doing it!

Have been off the wagon for nearly 4 years and my skin and energy levels are trash again so coming back to Keto as I think it really rather suited me. Hopefully just as beneficial for me this time around :slight_smile:

Thanks for your reply!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #4

You’re welcome.

And yeah, if you’re in the U.K., that bar is 9 g net. So perhaps not such a good idea. Sorry!

#5

It may easily fit into keto for someone (maybe it’s an interesting, rare combo but I can imagine days when I want to eat something very carby while keeping all my other food carnivore)… But very sweet stuff? Maybe not the best route. But that’s individual too I suppose. I like to avoid overly sweet things most of the time. I considered it useful to lower my sweetener intake so I did. Many people find sweet things triggering. I don’t but very sweet things seems more dangerous, they might interfere with my attempts to be happy with unsweetened or very lightly sweetened things.
For a very much undisciplined one like me, it’s extra useful not to be able to eat normal sweets anymore (oh I totally can make it happen when the stuff is exceptionally tasty, there is that amount of black coffee… but it doesn’t worth it often).

I am sure most of us can find something less carby and similarly good as that bar.
And it’s salted caramel, it shouldn’t be overly sweet! :smiley: IMO.

(KM) #6

In the US there are dozens of different “keto bars” with very low net carbs. My husband is just like yours in his preference for sweets, while I find these frankenfoods horrible. I looked up the NV protein bar: as Paul predicted, in the US lists 15 total carbs and six grams of fiber. Out of that,
five grams is added sugar - corn syrup and fructose, I assume the rest of the carbs come from the fact that this is almost entirely made of nuts. I wouldn’t consider this keto friendly, really, but it’s not loaded with artificial sweeteners.

ETA:. I have always questioned the blanket assumption that you can simply subtract fiber from carbs to get your net carbs. It’s one thing if the two are bound up naturally, for example in a nut or a piece of fruit. But if your sugar is simply coating a piece of fiber, does that really count? Isn’t the sugar as quickly available no matter what it surrounds? I have a hybrid process where I give a little more credence to net carbs when it’s a natural food, and stick with total carbs if the sugar simply added in.

#7

The sugar is ALWAYS in the net carb count, no matter what you eat it with it… It’s sugar, 100% carbs, 100% net carbs… We substract the fiber from the fiber-y part, be it nuts or pure fiber.

#8

Frankenfoods :rofl: I haven’t heard that before but it’s funny! Yes I don’t think they are for me! The uk seems to be a bit behind the us in terms of Keto treats. I got him a ‘Keto trail mix’ and it was stupidly high carbs and probably shouldn’t be classed as Keto.
I used to make him fat bombs with sweetener and stuff in, he just can’t kick the sugar or sugar substitutes.

#9

We don’t even have keto treats here in Hungary or I never saw. Except a “keto oatmeal”. It was normal (except instant or what, maybe just a dry parts? it makes little sense either way) oatmeal, 20g carbs in a teeny-tiny packet… Yeah, sure. Keto.

If sweeteners work, it may be good enough for now. The amount may go down with time. People not on sugar tend to need less sweetness, it happened strongly and quickly for me but it stopped and I just trained myself out of sweetening everything I did before. After a few (or several? :D) years, I didn’t need sweetener in my coffee. Some more years and I preferred it without, ate almost or truly unsweetened chocolate and even my cocoa was unsweetened. Then came carnivore with some lovely unsweetened desserts because no way I stop eating desserts… But maybe I will in 10 years.

Some people just give up sweet things and never look back but some of us should do things way more gradually. I see no problem in my sweeteners but it’s still not proper food and is a dependency so I work on it until they have no power on me anymore and I just eat some for fun once in a blue moon…

#10

What is carnivore? I’ve seen it come up a couple of times on here.

He only managed 2 weeks of Keto the last time, I don’t think it was long enough to really wean off the sweet cravings.

I hope that this time when I am Keto too we can do it much longer term and I think you are right, eventually the sugar cravings will stop and he won’t have to snaffle a fibre one brownie or a peanut caramel bar every night to get his fix! Haha

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #11

Carnivore, also called zero-carb, is a way of eating that excludes all plant-sourced foods. So basically, meat, poultry, and fish. Some people eat dairy as part of their carnivore diet, while others find they are sensitive to the proteins in dairy and avoid it. (Many carnivores also drink coffee, even though it is sourced from a plant.)

#12

Ah ok thanks!

Sorry one last question if that’s ok, milk.

Seen lots about avoiding milk. Is whole milk not Keto friendly? I thought it was fine but I’m second guessing lots of things now after my net carbs mess up!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #13

Some people eat dairy as part of their carnivore diet, while others find they are sensitive to the proteins in dairy and avoid it.

Whole milk contains a fair amount of sugar, and reduced-fat varieties contain even more. Not so, with heavy cream and aged cheese.

(Robin) #14

Good news! Heavy whipping cream is back on the menu.

#15

Actually, any item may fit into someone’s keto, of course some aren’t usually a good idea (very sugary stuff but a little still may be okay) and if an item triggers carb eating or one can’t stop at the right carb count, it’s a problem too. But yes, people usually consider lower-carb items “keto” (portions matter too, garlic may be very carby let alone spices but you don’t eat them galore).

Milk is even carnivore if you ask me but be careful as it’s very carby. If you drink it like me, I don’t always can stop below 7-8 dl… But I usually can. I don’t care about animal sugar as it doesn’t seem to matter to me… But dairy in general is problematic for many people and milk is so sugary that most ketoers avoid it. I don’t but cream works so much better for almost everything without making my carnivore(-ish, I am rarely 100%) days carby (without milk, I automatically stay below 20g carbs on carnivore. it’s WAY below my ketosis carb limit but mere ketosis never was enough for me).
Of course, cream may still bring too much carbs and especially fat, it depends, it was a problem for me before but now I am used to be very careful with it.
So it’s up to you :slight_smile:

I didn’t drink milk in the first days, it came back in the last 1-2 years. Much better for hot summer days than beer… But it never will be a significant item even for me. I don’t even have it all the time. Now we have a 3.5% fat one. It has way more sugar than that, it’s milk, after all…

#16

@PaulL, you are fab at explaining our carnivore lifestyle. You rock on that!

@Lblblb, yea one can’t shake sugar desires if one is eating any products that are sugar to keep the sugar alive in ones life. Your hubby has to ‘give it up’ to do best and then can ‘have some back’ if he does fine on Keto Plan. In truth it is hard to balance a keto eating plan when one tries desperately to keep what they truly need to dump alive in their meal day. But many Keto plan eaters can have some sweets and control it fine in their carb counts and do very well in that lifestyle. Starting Keto plan and doing it correctly is the first key ya know, then one can experiment a tad more on how they can eat and do well for themselves individually. Hope you hubby hangs on and does well!!

(KM) #17

Yes, I’m just questioning the science a bit. If your body has to work to extract the carbohydrate in something like a nut, that would slow the glucose absorption. But if you’re talking about corn syrup and sawdust mixed together, the minute that hits water the sugar is immediately available as if you’d eaten it alone. I don’t really understand why you’d subtract the fiber in that case, as it’s not doing anything to the sugar. (I know that’s what the industry does when making their labels, I just question whether it’s accurate.)

#18

from the net: The fact of the matter, is that “net carbs” is not an actual coined term , used in part by the FDA. It’s simply a term created by marketers to make a product more enticing to low carb dieters. You’re best bet is to stay away from artificially processed food sources and stick with wholesome natural food sources.

------------just ‘google’ the truth about net carbs and you find some real eye opening truths about them. the fiber subtracted which is overly processed in the product ‘ain’t even’ like real fiber anyway…read up on it. very interesting. One clean way to enter Keto plan is count total carbs. Leave the netting to the corps to line their pockets :slight_smile:

(KM) #19

I’d love a study that actually addressed the difference between processed foods containing both fiber and sugar, versus natural foods containing both. Probably because I’m a big fan of salads and I don’t want to have to count those carbs!

#20

yea feel ya on that.
the nitty gritty on what real food goes thru ‘to be processed’ into ? is wild on some processes too. Like strain thru a bleach chemical concoction to remove bacteria or ? and break down its cellular levels to become ‘glue into the processed food’ and more. All processed stuff is really scary when one pinpoints down what it really is all about. Stuff I never thought of when I woofed down tons of it back in the day! Now, yikes, when one googles about it all one says OMGosh it ain’t food literally, whcih is why most of the entire population is malnourished and starving on ‘food’ of today. Crazy truly when ya think about it in the big pic.
Makes one wonder when they get an eyeful of ‘what will food become’ in the next 20-30 yrs? Worse? no idea which way this will go on food to feed populations but big corps got big reach and profits to obtain. ugh