What Every Good Paleo Followers Need To Know: Are Kind Bars Paleo?

Recently, I have started following the paleo diet, which is to eat only whole, unprocessed foods, including vegetables, fruits, and some nuts. What keeps me concerned is whether or not are kind bars paleo. It is something that I really wanted to figure out since I eat this healthy snack bar during breaks.

There has been an ongoing debate about the snack bars’ healthy claims, especially from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) standards. That’s why I have looked into this concern more seriously and what I’m going to share are the results of my research. For more information, continue reading below.

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What Are Kind Bars?

Are Kind Bars Paleo

First off, let me explain what kind bars are to those who’re not familiar with them. Kind bars are marketed as healthy snack bars because they’re made from whole foods, like nuts, and natural ingredients, like honey and fruits.

Most Kind bars are gluten-free, but they’re coated with puffed rice, which can be unappealing for some paleo dieters.

According to Fortune, Kind bars have become popular in the snack food industry, due to their branding as portable and healthy snack bars.

If you love a crunchy texture, then you’ll like Kind bars because they contain whole nuts which can be very filling and delicious to munch. You can buy Kind bars in most grocery stores, so getting access to them is quite easy.

So, Are Kind Bars Paleo?

Are Kind Bars Paleo

When you follow a Paleo diet, it means you avoid eating processed foods, grains, and refined sugar. Since Kind bars are made of whole nuts, dried fruits, honey, and seeds, then it is safe to say that they can be considered Paleo. However, keep in mind that everything in excess is bad for your health, so eat this snack bar in moderation since this contains sugar.

Registered dietitian Shelby Keys suggests choosing a kind bar flavor with not more than 8 grams of sugar and more than 5 grams of protein. My favorite is the Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt which is made from walnuts, almonds, and sea salt. It is free from gluten, genetically modified organism (GMO), and sugar alcohols.

The FDA’s Take On Kind Bars

Are Kind Bars Paleo

Although kind bars are marketed as healthy snack bars, the FDA says otherwise. As reported by Consumer Reports, the FDA has sent a warning letter to Kind company specifying that four of its brands didn’t conform to the standards of what can be considered as healthy.

The FDA adds that a food can only make claims of being healthy if it has less than 1 gram of saturated fat per serving.

Two of the four Kind bars called out by the FDA came from its Fruit & Nut product line, which are the Almond & Coconut and Almond & Apricot flavors.

The other two came from its Kind Plus product line, which are the Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein and Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants flavors.

However, the FDA has changed its stance towards Kind bars when the snack bar company issued a Citizen petition appealing to re-evaluate the agency’s definition of “healthy”. Now, the Kind Bar flavors that were formerly deemed as mislabeled can mark themselves as healthy again.

What Other Nutritionists Say

Are Kind Bars Paleo

Via eat-yourself-skinny.com

Dr. Liz Applegate states in Men’s Journal that the saturated fats found in Kind bars are healthy because they came from nuts and coconut oil. These snack bars offer healthy fats that are even good for the heart.

Studies have shown that nuts increase high-density lipoprotein (hDL), a good group of lipoproteins that carry the bad cholesterol away from the arteries.

Nutritionist Lisa Moskovitz explains in Eat This, Not That! that Kind bars are good for you because the nuts and seeds contain several nutrients, like fiber, calcium, and omega-3.

The only problem with these snack bars is the amount of sugar added. To prevent insulin spikes, avoid overindulging yourself with these snack bars.

Making Your Own Kind Bar

Are Kind Bars Paleo

To get control over what ingredients you put into your snack bar, you can create your own Kind bar at home. 

Here Are The Ingredients You Need.

  • 1 cup almonds (soaked and roasted)
  • 1 cup walnuts (soaked and roasted)
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut
  • 3 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 4 tablespoons honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons sea salt

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • While your oven is preheating, crush the walnuts and almonds. To do this easily, place the nuts in a Ziploc bag and try to crush them with a rolling pin.
  • In a large bowl, whisk the honey, coconut oil, vanilla extract, sea salt, cinnamon.
  • With a spatula, add the nuts into the honey mix and coat them well.
  • Transfer the well-coated nuts into a baking sheet lined with a parchment paper.
  • Divide into halves and bake for around 15 minutes.
  • Once baked, let it cool on the counter and refrigerate.
  • Once hardened, slice into bars.

Try A Kind Bar Today!

Kind bars are Paleo because they’re made from whole nuts, seeds, and natural sugars like honey. Although they’re gluten-free, you still have to watch the number of snack bars you can consume every day. Since these bars still contain sugar, snack on them moderately.

If you’ve already tried some Kind bars, share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. You can also post this wonderful article in social media to help spread awareness.

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