ORLANDO, FL. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Healthy eating isn’t always easy. When it comes to healthy foods, you think you know, but new research shows you might have no idea. For instance, what’s a healthier choice? Chocolate ice cream or a granola bar?
A team of researchers from Tufts University spent three years studying more than eight-thousand foods to score them according to 54 attributes, including ingredients, additives, and protein. According to their high-tech rating scale, ice cream scores 35 points, while granola bars are just 15 points. When it came to rice versus French fries, fries scored eight-times more points than white rice. Some other surprising winners were couscous compared to bacon, pancakes from a fast-food restaurant versus a cheese and ham omelet, and a bowl of cheerios ranked higher than multi-seed bread by 49 points. The most surprising comparison was a thick crust pizza with extra meat scoring higher than an omelet, cereal, and white rice.
Unprocessed, nutrient-dense foods like veggies, fruits, and nuts received some of the highest scores and sweet desserts and fizzy drinks scored the lowest. Healthy foods
A surprising swap for the coffee lovers, the food compass gave a skim milk cappuccino 73 points, while an espresso earned just 55 points.
Sources:
https://sites.tufts.edu/foodcompass/research/data/
https://sites.tufts.edu/foodcompass/research/methods/
https://now.tufts.edu/2021/10/14/ranking-healthfulness-foods-first-worst
Contributors to this news report include: Julie Marks, Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer and Editor.
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