Healthy Eats – Food Network Healthy Living Blog: Food Network's Healthy Eats: Healthy Recipes, Weight Loss Tips & Nutrition Information

Festive or scary?

The supermarket can be a scary place. We’ve scanned store shelves for the most processed processed foods. Our list is growing – here are the top 5 for this week. The good news? In almost every case, you can make your own with REAL FOOD!

Canned Frosting
Mix up trans fats and corn syrup and you’ve got a tub of cake frosting. At more than 70 calories per tablespoon, it’s not worth it for a variety of reasons.

Healthier Alternative: Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting

Powdered Drink Mixes
Sweetened with tons of sugar or artificial sweeteners and illuminated with a cocktail of potentially dangerous coloring agents, you (and your kids) should pass.

Healthier Alternative: Flavored water, iced tea and lemonade done right

Jarred Cheese
Festively called “queso” this jar is nothing but a sodium-laden mix of powdered milk, oil, preservatives and artificial colors.

Healthier Alternative: Chili-Cheese Dip

Canned Luncheon Meats
Canned animal parts thickened with potato starch and seasoned with nitrites isn’t our idea of a smart protein choice.

Healthier Alternative: Learn how to choose the best deli meats

Chicken Nuggets
You don’t even want to know what goes in to these uber-processed chicken bites. Even the ones made with breast meat are chock full of unhealthy oils and preservatives .

Healthy Alternative: Baked Chicken Tenders

Tell Us: What processed food are you suspicious of?

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• 14 Foods Health Experts Won’t Eat
• What’s In a Hot Dog?
• 9 Foods That Sound Healthy…But Aren’t

Dana Angelo White, MS, RD, ATC, is a registered dietitian, certified athletic trainer and owner of Dana White Nutrition, Inc., which specializes in culinary and sports nutrition. See Dana’s full bio »