When Fruit is Not As Healthy As a Candy Bar

Last summer I got into these freeze dried mango slices. The only ingredient in the entire package is mango. How unhealthy can it be?

Pretty bad actually.

I have been trying to watch my sugar intake for a while now and I am good at math. Which is why I was horrified to realize that a 1.7 ounce bag of mango slices contains 1.4 ounces of sugar. Check it out for yourself. That bag contains 39 grams of sugars. That is 1.375 ounces in a 1.7 ounce bag. So I am eating a bag of mango flavored sugar with a little fiber and vitamin C.

Ouch!

Here is the thing. As a mom I would never think to give my child a Snickers bar for a snack. Yet oddly that candy bar contains more protein, more fiber and is in many ways healthier than the freeze dried fruit.

Amazing isn’t it.

Now this is not true of the freeze dried blueberries which have a lot less sugar and more nutrients. They also are not as sweet or tasty.

I will continue to feed my son and myself fresh unprocessed mango slices as part of a meal. But I probably won’t be eating too much freeze dried fruit in the future.

And I am going to continue to do the math on the labels.