If you're actively trying to lose weight, you have a general understanding of the foods to avoid in order to remain in a calorie deficit. The first things that come to mind are likely sweets, fast food, and sugary soda, but you also have to be mindful of certain foods that merely pose as "healthy" options. These products often use health buzzwords to make consumers believe they'll help them achieve their goals when they actually do anything but. The latest variety that dietitians are warning against? Veggies straws and veggie chips.
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Veggie chips are not as healthy as they seem.
Speaking with The New York Post, Mitchell Roslin, MD, chief of bariatric surgery at Northern Westchester Hospital in New York, advised against eating these snacks, noting that they are highly processed, high in calories and sodium, and just "not filling."
And while you may have grabbed a bag of veggie chips in lieu of your typical bag of Doritos or Pringles, Roslin says it probably doesn't make much of a difference. He went so far as to tell The Post that veggie chips are "no better for you than a potato chip."
In a piece for Eat This, Not That!, Sarah Glinski, RD, called out the Veggie Straws brand in particular. In addition to the concerns Roslin brought up, Glinski pointed out that Veggie Straws have added oils "that may negate some perceived health benefits" and are low in both fiber and protein.
Echoing Roslin, Glinski noted that the first three ingredients in Veggie Straws—potato starch, potato flour, and vegetable oil—are similar to those you'd find in a bag of potato chips.
In a video posted on YouTube, Jaclyn London, MD, RD, a New York State Certified Dietitian-Nutritionist (CDN) and author, spoke on the ingredients and misleading coloring.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
"The first ingredient right here is potato starch—I thought these were veggie straws, like why isn't it a potato? Otherwise, you could've just had some vegetables and moved on with your life," she says. "The other thing is that the other ingredients here are other types of dehydrated veggies and then other types of naturally occurring colors to give the actual snack food the look of vegetables, without any vegetable to speak of."
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Regular potato chips might be the better option.
Even looking past the tricky marketing, these products can play tricks on your brain.
With weight loss, you also have to be mindful of portion control, which is another way vegetable chips could be detrimental to your goals. According to Glinski, they are "hyper-palatable" thanks to their high salt and fat content. These kinds of foods "highjack areas in the brain," eliminating your sense of fullness and making it hard to stop eating, Kristin Kirkpatrick, RD, registered dietitian for Cleveland Clinic, said in a 2023 press release about food addiction.
While Glinski notes that Veggie Straws aren't all bad—they are gluten-free, contain less fat than potato chips, and don't have artificial flavors or preservatives—if you have a hankering for chips while on your diet, experts say you don't have to ignore it.
"You gotta love a good, old-fashioned potato chip," London tells viewers, referencing a bag of Lay's Kettle Cooked Original Flavored Potato Chips. "Go with these instead of the 'healthier' seeming option. These are just potatoes, oil, and salt, which are the ingredients that shouldbe in potato chips! Plus, you've knocked off 100 milligrams of sodium and added an extra gram of protein."
