Nutrition Frenzy

Not many people can resist the lure of a box of Thin Mints. You can blame your illicit cookie purchase on those endearing, imploring Scout faces all you want. Truth is, it don’t make a lick of difference who’s selling them - little girl, little monkey - whatever, a box of Tag A Longs is just plain tempting.

Happy news: In celebration of their 90th year of selling drool-inducing cookies, Girl Scouts are approached something like health consciousness by removing most of the trans fats from their products. Key here is the word “most”.

In fact, “most” Girl Scout Cookies are still high in sugar, saturated fat and lots of artificial gunk. Plus, they are still not entirely free of trans fats. Definitely NOT items to be confused with health food. BUT - still a step in the right direction.

According to Girl Scouts of the USA Vice President Denise Pessich, changes were made to the cookies after the two bakeries that produce the goods found trans-fat alternatives that didn’t compromise the flavor, texture or shelf life. Shelf life? Anyone with the willpower to leave an unopened box of Thin Mints on the shelf probably wouldn’t buy them in the first place. I know I am not alone when I say that those little guys literally sing to me. Sing! My name!!!

Here’s the lowdown on the slim-down:

While most varieties have had MOST trans fats removed, technically the nasty stuff is still in there – labels still show partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

Don’t be fooled - the FDA allows these cookies to be labeled as “zero trans fat” since they contain less than ½ gram per serving. Problem is, no one really eats only 1 serving unless they have had their taste buds surgically removed. For example, 4 Thin Mints, 2 Samosas or 2 Caramel deLites constitute a serving. Give or take a few Tag-A- Longs, the number ten is closer to what truly goes down the hatch each time I pickup a box.

Even if you are some kind of martyr who manages to stop munching at one serving, no way do you just toss the rest of that box away. Face it, you hog the rest down over the next few days. This means you (or your kids) could consume several grams of trans fat by the time you polish off the box.

This is not just me being neurotic – it is significant-big-time physicians, like Dr. Mehmet Oz (Oprah’s boy) urging us to eat none, nada, zero trans fats - EVER - since even small amounts are unhealthy. This stuff accumulates quickly and sticks around in our systems.

It’s great that The Girl’s are on the right track. But be aware that “zero trans fats” is deceptive. Don’t just stick your head back in the sand (or the box) and delude yourself until you hit the end of that cellophane sleeve.