Protein bars; good for you or nutritious-sounding candy?

Are protein bars superfoods or junk food with higher levels of protein? The NY Times weighed in on this popular food item.

Many of us have eaten these calorie-dense packaged foods that can offer energy when a formal meal is not available, but are they actually good for us?

According to Marketwatch, these foods are continuing to grow internationally in market share.  Science tells us that older people 50 and up need more protein while younger people seem to do better with carbs.

Which is best?  Check out the NY Times article below

Are Protein Bars Actually Good for You?

Or are they just glorified candy bars?

By Dani Blum Jan. 12, 2023

In the late 1980s, two distance runners who were living together in the Bay Area blended vitamins, oat bran, milk protein and corn syrup in their kitchen, concocting what would become a PowerBar, one of the first modern protein bars. By the mid 1990s, it was a phenomenon — what one writer for The New York Times called “a high octane snack for yuppies and fitness freaks.”

Today, though, protein bars are everywhere, and their branding has expanded far beyond exercise fanatics. They’re presented as healthy snacks for when you’re on the go or even as part of a self-care routine. Grocery stores, gas stations, bodegas, gyms and pharmacies now carry colorfully wrapped hunks of whey protein, marketed as energy-supplying health foods, despite coming in flavors like cookie dough and lemon cake. The global market for protein bars is growing quickly and expected to swell to more than $2 billion by the end of 2026, according to the financial analysis site, MarketWatch.

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