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 8,000 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.
A surprising swap for coffee lovers: the food compass gave a skim milk cappuccino 73 points, while an espresso earned just 55 points.