The Worst Chips and Dips

Consider the potato: It’s heavy. It’s brown. It’s gnarly. It grows in the dirt. It’s hardly the most appealing food on earth.

Now consider the Pringle: It’s light. It’s golden. It’s crispy. And it comes in a can! A tremendous improvement on the earthbound spud, right? Except for one thing: Pringles aren’t potatoes.

In fact, they’re only 42 percent potato, which means that every time you pop a Pringle, what you’re mostly eating is...um...something else. But what?

Oil. In fact, a single serving—just 14 chips—will grease up your innards with 11 grams of fat, as much as you’d get in a Burger King hamburger. And that’s exactly the problem with most chips: Food marketers have done to the potato and the ear of corn what British Petroleum did to the gulf: They took a great source of natural food, and covered it in oil.

Does that mean you can’t accompany your summer barbecue with a side order of chips and dip? Absolutely not. (I have a friend who followed the advice in Eat This, Not That! and lost 10 pounds of belly fat in six weeks and kept it off—without ever dieting!) There are plenty of healthy options out there. If you love potato chips, check out the Kettle Bakes line (the closest you can get to an unadulterated spud). If you’re into corn chips, Sun Chips Original is made from whole grains—meaning you’re upping your heart-healthy fiber intake with each bite. Below, I’ve listed some simple swaps you can make to help you stay slim all summer long—so you can literally “chip away” at your belly!

WORST REGULAR POTATO CHIP
Boulder Canyon Malt Vinegar & Sea Salt (~14 chips, 28 g)
150 calories
7 g fat (1 g saturated)
410 mg sodium

Boulder Canyon might boast “Natural Foods” on the packaging, but these chips contain nearly double the sodium of all the other major brands in the grocery store. To cut back on the sodium, opt for Popchips Salt & Pepper, instead. Popchips are neither fried nor baked—the potatoes “pop” with heat and pressure. It’s delicious ingenuity.

Eat This Instead!
Popchips Salt & Pepper (~20 chips, 28 g)
120 calories
4 g fat (0 g saturated)
290 mg sodium

Pay attention to how you chase your chips, too. Pick up the latest book in our series, Drink This, Not That!, and find out how watching what you drink can save you more than 400 calories a day. 

WORST FLAVORED POTATO CHIP
Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream (~11 chips, 28 g)
160 calories
11 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
230 mg sodium

Ruffles are cut thick and crinkled, which means more fried potato is stuffed into each bite. Think of it this way: If you stretched out the crinkles, you’d have a massive hunk of fried potato. If you want a flavored crisp, go for anything from the Baked! Lays line, which has about 10 fewer calories per serving than almost any other brand of baked chips.

Eat This Instead!
Baked! Lays Barbecue Flavored (~14 chips)
120 calories
3 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
210 mg sodium   

And remember: Not all food that sounds healthy is healthy. See for yourself—read 30 “Healthy” Foods That Aren’t.

WORST REGULAR CORN CHIP
Fritos Original (~32 chips, 28 g)
160 calories
10 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
160 mg sodium

Beloved Fritos are great for transporting bean dip to your mouth. But they’re decidedly not great for keeping off the belly fat. Choose the Baked! Tostitos Scoops! instead. They scoop just as well as the Fritos, with less than half the fat. And if you crack them in half, they’re roughly the same size, too.

Eat This Instead!
Baked! Tostitos Scoops (~15 chips, 28 g)
120 calories
3 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
130 mg sodium

WORST FLAVORED CORN CHIP
Tostitos Hint of Lime (~6 chips, 28 g)
150 calories
8 g fat (1 g saturated)
160 mg sodium

For Tostitos, a “hint of lime” includes partially hydrogenated soybean oil and artificial coloring. If you want lime-flavored chips, your best option is easily the Guiltless Gourmet line. It has fewer ingredients, less fat, and double the fiber of the Tostitos.

Eat This Instead!
Guiltless Gourmet All Natural Chili Lime (~18 chips, 28 g)
120 calories
3 g fat (0 g saturated)
200 mg sodium

WORST CHEESE DIP
Kraft Cheez Whiz Original Cheese Dip (2 Tbsp, 33 g)
90 calories
7 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
440 mg sodium

This glowing orange goop is pure junk. If you have a taste for cheese, save your calories for the real thing. We're especially fond of Tostitos Salsa Con Queso Medium. With the nutritional perks of tomatoes and peppers, salsa con queso beats straight cheese dip every time. Plus, you can eat twice as much for the same caloric punch (not that you should, of course!).

Eat This Instead!
Tostitos Salsa Con Queso Medium (2 Tbsp, 34 g)
40 calories
2.5 g fat (1 g saturated)
280 mg sodium

For life-changing nutrition and health secrets you can use instantly, follow me on Twitter. And for a more comprehensive list of disastrous beverages, and what to drink instead, check out the new losers on the 2010 list of the 20 Worst Drinks in America.

WORST PARTY DIP
Lay's Creamy Ranch Dip (2 Tbsp, 33 g)
60 calories
5 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
240 mg sodium

Make ranch your staple dip and you could be adding hundreds of low-quality calories to your snacking. Instead, choose hummus. This fiber- and protein-rich Mediterranean staple is perfect for dipping and slathering, and it has only a little over half the calories as nutritionally void ranch.

Eat This Instead!
Wild Garden Hummus Dip Roasted Garlic (2 Tbsp, 30 g)
35 calories
2 g fat (0 g saturated)
70 mg sodium

WORST SALSA
Tostitos Creamy Salsa (2 Tbsp, 32 g)
35 calories
3 g fat (0 g saturated)
150 mg

Salsa is typically the planet's finest condiment because it's packed with antioxidants that help prevent cancers and macular degeneration. Another benefit? It's typically no more than 10 meager calories per 2 tablespoons. Any salsa labeled "creamy," however, has been polluted with a dose of fatty oil. This Tostitos Creamy Salsa is more than three times as caloric as the Ortega Thick & Chunky. Maybe not such a big deal after one scoop. But after 10? You're looking at the caloric difference of four McDonald's McNuggets.

Eat This Instead!
Ortega Thick & Chunky Salsa Medium (2 Tbsp, 31 g)
10 calories
0 g fat
210 mg sodium

For the healthiest packaged foods around, check out 125 Healthiest Packaged Foods for Women and 125 Best Packaged Foods for Men. 

WORST GUACAMOLE DIP
T. Marzetti Guacamole Veggie Dip (2 Tbsp, 29 g)
130 calories
13 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
240 mg sodium

Real guacamole is an incredibly healthy spread for chips and sandwiches alike. That's because avocados are rich with oleic acid, a healthy fat that helps to lower the bad cholesterol and raise the good. The problem, however, is that guacamole imposters are hiding in ever cooler in the country. This one from T. Marzetti is made up mostly of oil and sour cream.

Eat This Instead!
Wholly Guacamole Classic (2 Tbsp, 30 g)
50 calories
4 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
75 mg sodium

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