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Busy mornings call for improvising, especially when it comes to breakfast. Most people rely on convenient foods like Pop-Tarts to help them get something in their stomach in the morning, but health experts say that the beloved toasted pastry isn't the best choice for you OR your kids! Here's why you should consider throwing out that box of Pop-Tarts in your pantry once and for all:
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1. They offer very little nutritional value
Pop-Tarts are loaded with sugar and fat and fail to provide your body with the healthy nutrients it needs. In fact, they're considered empty calories because they're a high calorie food with very little nutritional value.
2. They're easy to overeat
One serving of Pop-Tarts is one toaster pastry. But, the popular breakfast treat is pre-packaged with two pastries inside. This encourages people to overeat and consume two servings worth of unhealthy calories, sodium and fat.
3. There's a considerable amount of high fructose syrup in them
Pop-Tarts get their sweet and delicious flavor from its 14 grams of sugar, which also comes from high fructose corn syrup. According to Huffington Post, eating an excessive amount of high fructose corn syrup can cause fatty liver, heart attacks, strokes, cancer, dementia and Type 2 diabetes.
4. Two Pop-Tarts fufill your daily recommended sugar intake
The American Heart Association (AHA) says that the daily sugar intake for men should be no more than 36 grams. For women, it should be no more than 24 grams, and no more than 23 grams for children, depending on the age of the child. Since Pop-Tarts contain at least 14 grams of sugar, having two of them will put you past the healthy recommended number for sugar.
5. They could be making you gain weight
With a minimum of six grams of fat each, having two Pop-Tarts can contain at least 12 grams of fat. All of that fat combined with all of the sugar inside make Pop-Tarts a sneaky breakfast that's actually making you gain weight! This can then lead to obesity in the future...
6. There's a lot of sodium in there, too!
Who knew that Pop-Tarts were high in sodium? They contain a minimum of 190 milligrams of sodium per serving. Make sure you're mindful of how much sodium you're consuming when you have Pop-Tarts, because too much sodium can cause health issues like hypertension and heart disease.
7. They get their signature color from artificial food coloring
Pop-Tarts are known for being colorful, but it turns out that they contain artificial colors including Blue #1 and Yellow #6. These ingredients have been linked to cancer and can cause behavioral issues in children.
8. They're not made with real fruit
The fruity Pop-Tarts flavors are advertised as being baked with "real fruit," but its ingredients list implies that there's about 10% of fruit inside each pastry. The other 90% comes from unhealthy ingredients like enriched flour, soybean and palm oil, GMOs, artificial colors and sugar.
9. They're loaded with preservatives, too!
Ever wonder why Pop-Tarts last so long and still taste so good? That's because they're loaded with artificial preservatives that can be really harmful to your health. They can cause asthma and make your cardiovascular health deteriorate. Plus, they can even cause cancer!
