No one wants to count calories during a holiday feast, but allowing yourself free rein on pies, casseroles and turkey galore is one way to feel like a pumpkin spiced slug the next day. The good news: That’s the best headspace to be in if you want to make some healthy changes in your life.
The best ways to detox after a holiday binge include loading up on water, cutting down on sodium and carbonated drinks, not consuming alcohol and focusing on eating a diet rich in foods that are naturally high in fiber, like fresh fruits and vegetables along with lean protein. Cutting out all other eating habits isn’t realistic for everyone and certainly not realistic in perpetuity for most people, which is where these healthy superfood snacks come in.
Many of them are clean, ready-to-eat products high in good stuff (antioxidants and energy-rich ingredients) and free from the bad stuff (think: processed ingredients like white sugar and white flour), while others are better alternatives to guilty vices (think: pizza or Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups). Given that the holidays are a time for family, it’s also worth noting that everything on this health superfood snacks list is kid-friendly.
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Snacks That Sneak in Superfoods To Help You Detox From a Holiday Binge
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Sweet Potato
Hail Merry’s sweet potato cups give Reese's a healthy makeover. They're made with sweet potato and cinnamon in an almond shortbread cookie crust with no dairy, wheat, gluten, grains, soy or corn.
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Charcoal
It's time to bring black granola into your pantry. Founded and run by a solo entrepreneur, gr8nola is a clean ingredient granola line made with things like matcha, turmeric, cacao and, as of late, charcoal, a detoxifier.
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Chickpeas
Who doesn't love pasta? No one. Unfortunately, the classic white and even wheat offer little to no nutritional value, which is where Banza comes in. The brand's chickpea-based options pack in double the protein, four times the fiber and nearly half the net carbs of wheat pasta.
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20 Superfoods
After hearing a podcast featuring the founder of Perfect Bar, we couldn't wait to try these. Not only to support a brand that was started by 12 brothers and sisters (some, obviously, more involved than others) after losing their father, but because the brand's bars are so clean and fresh, they need to be kept in the refrigerator. Every bar is formulated with 20 organic superfoods, like kale, spinach and lemon.
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White Beans
Here's dips are clean and nutritious. This white bean flavor is made with navy beans, extra virgin olive oil, onions, basil, garlic, water, lemon juice, salt, non-GMO citric acid and nothing else. Other equally clean varieties include black bean and tomato, beet and spinach and mushroom, all of which pack as much great flavor as they do nutrients.
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Kale
Amazing Grass makes a long list of powders, like Organic Kale Powder, that you can easily sneak into a smoothie, muffin batter or something else to add more nutrients to your daily diet.
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Quinoa
Undercover Quinoa could be the Rice Krispies Treats of this wellness-obsessed generation. It provides the same crispy, sweet crunch, but with an organic, all-natural, non-GMO, gluten-free twist that's also way higher in protein, fiber and nutrients.
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Olive Oil
Here's a fun way to load up on good fats. Safe + Fair's chips are not only allergen-free, they're made with clean ingredients and aren't fried. These, for example, are made with yellow corn, olive oil, whole quinoa, flaxseeds, sea salt, sunflower seeds, chia seeds and nothing else. Plus, 3 percent of proceeds are donated to the Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy & Asthma Research at Stanford University.
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Fresh Produce Blends
Yumi is a weekly subscription service that ships fresh, organic, plant-based baby food blends, but if you're a time-crunched adult looking for nutrients on the go, these jars are a great option. They're filler-free and can also be used in other recipes (like pumpkin puree in a pancake recipe or a ratatouille blend in a chicken dish). Try everything from Pitaya Porridge to What a Peach.
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Zucchini
Urban Remedy makes a number of low-glycemic, low-sugar and low-carb snacks, but this one in particular will have you questioning why you would ever subject your body to digesting Lay's potato chips again.
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Cinnamon
We all know Justin's for its almond butter, but you might not know that the brand's continuously launching new products, like Cinnamon Almond Butter. Not only does cinnamon have a long list of health benefits, it helps curb appetite, which comes in handy when you have a deliciously addictive almond butter on hand.
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Cherry Juice
Tart cherry juice has a long list of health benefits, but more often than not, store-bought varieties are full of so much sugar that all the good stuff is negated. Why is there so much added sugar? Because, well, tart doesn't go down as easy as sweet. This option from Cheribundi is sweetened by Stevia to maximize great flavor and lower the junk food doppelgänger factor.
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Marine Collagen Peptides
Collagen powders are big in the beauty/food/wellness space and now thanks to Kalumi, there's actually a tasty way to get your fix.
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Almonds, Coconut and Matcha
Dang is best known for its coconut-based chips, but it now also has a line of Stevia sweetened bars made only with clean, recognizable ingredients. They're very low in sugar, high in fiber and protein and while the saturated fat content hovers around 20 percent, it's from clean sources like coconut.
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Plant-Based Protein
Siren Snacks makes energy balls/protein bites using real ingredients like flaxseeds and dates to create these grain-, dairy-, soy-, gluten- and nut-free rich sources of plant-based protein (12 grams per serving). Ingredients like lemon and poppy seed pack a zingy punch.
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Coffee Fruit
Neuro Coffee may taste like "regular" coffee, but it's the first to incorporate a patented dose of antioxidants from the coffee fruit (ya, fruit!), which is typically discarded at harvest. Coffee fruit is still being studied, but there are already two clinical trials that have shown it helps support neuron growth and repair by increasing a protein in the body called BDNF. So basically, this coffee will make you smarter ... or at least that's how we're justifying our three-cups-a-day habit.
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Flaxseed
If you're looking to replace bread, check out Flackers. Unlike other products like GG crackers, these taste as amazing on their own as they do topped with cold cuts, cheese or whatever else you fancy. And, because of their flax base, one serving has 3 to 4 grams of protein, 6 grams of fiber and is high in omega-3 fatty acids.
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Cauliflower
Frozen pizzas are low on the list of things you should be eating, but if you're prone to indulging, Oprah Winfrey launched a line with somewhat of a nutritional twist: one-third of the crust is made with cauliflower, meaning you're getting some veggies while keeping that classic crust texture. Note, however, this should still be considered a treat food — just a better alternative — as it's still high in sodium, carbs and saturated fat.
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Vegetables
MadeGood's mini granola snacks shouldn't replace your consumption of fresh vegetables, but each serving of the little nuggets are equal to a serving of vegetables from six different sources. The strawberry flavor is made with spinach, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes and beets. They also have shiitake mushroom powder, but you won't know it when you're chowing down.
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Fresh Produce Blends
If you're looking for the same benefits and uses as Yumi but don't want a subscription model, check out GoGo squeeZ's convenient fruit and veggie pouches.
