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Product Review: Nutrition Bars (Energy Bars, Fiber Bars, Protein Bars, Meal Replacement Bars, Snack Bars and Whole Food Bars) |
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HOW PRODUCTS WERE EVALUATED:
Products selected represent many of those commonly sold and/or available nationally in the U.S. ConsumerLab.com purchased products on the open market through retail stores, on-line retailers, catalogues, or multi-level marketing companies. Products were not accepted directly from manufacturers.
Testing Methods:
Nutrition bar products were tested for their total calories, total fat, poly- and monounsaturated fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, protein, total carbohydrates, total sugars, sugar alcohols and sodium content. All products were first analyzed for their specific nutritional components using AOAC (Association of Official Analytical Chemists, International) methods in an independent laboratory. Products not passing this initial assay for any specific nutrient were tested in a second independent laboratory utilizing similar AOAC methods.
The identities of the products were not disclosed to the laboratories performing the testing.
Passing Score: *
To achieve a "Pass" in the testing, a product had to:
- Specify the amount of all nutrients in the product that are required by the FDA to be stated in the Nutrition Facts panel for foods or in the Supplement Facts panel for dietary supplements.
- >Meet its label claims within a specified range for each nutritional component as indicated below:
- >Total Fat (within 1 gram or 10% above claim, whichever is greater)
- >Saturated Fat (within 0.5 gram or 10% above claim, whichever is greater)
- >Cholesterol (within 2 mg or 10% above claim, whichever is greater)
- >Sodium (within 100 mg or 10% above claim, whichever is greater)
- >Protein (within +/- 20% of claim)
- >Total Carbohydrates (within +/- 5 grams of claim)
- >Total Sugars (within 1 gram or 10% above claim, whichever is greater)
- >Total Calories (within +/- 20% of claim)
A "Pass" was based on meeting the above criteria in either the first or second rounds of testing.
* Passing scores allow for specific margins of technical error associated with each analysis. ConsumerLab.com reserves the right to disqualify a product at any time from passing its testing if it considers such product to present a safety risk or to provide misleading or inaccurate information in its labeling.
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