By Brandi Watters, Herald Bulletin Staff Writer
ANDERSON — Chicken wings, potato chips and delivery pizza are a big part of the American Super Bowl tradition, but everyone’s favorite game day foods are also among the most unhealthy.
Jenny Martin, a dietitian with Community Hospital, said cheese is one of the worst offenders.
In just one ounce, cheese packs a whopping 100 calories and 10 grams of fat.
One ounce of cheese is the equivalent of about four dice.
Dressings and dips can also pack unexpected amounts of fat.
A favorite for dipping veggies and chicken wings, bleu cheese and ranch dressings amount to 150 calories and 15 grams of fat in just two tablespoons, Martin said.
Even without touching an appetizer, calories can add up in the drinks.
Beer, a game day mainstay, contains an average of 150 calories per bottle.
No grazing allowed
Martin said the Super Bowl ranks second only to Thanksgiving in terms of overeating.
“People overeat. They tend to graze all day long on snack foods and junk foods.”
A game day favorite with a bad reputation might not be as bad as most people think.
Pizza, Martin said, is a decent meal by itself.
“You can get vegetables out of pizza servings. You can get dairy and meat and all that and carbs, but people don’t just eat one slice of pizza, they have chicken wings and chips and dip.”
Every 3,500 calories eaten equates to one pound gained, Martin explained.
The Calorie Control Council and Snack Food Association finds that Americans will eat 30 million pounds of snacks on Super Bowl Sunday.
Broken down, that includes:
◆ 11.2 million pounds of potato chips
◆ 8.2 million pounds of tortilla chips
◆ 4.3 million pounds of pretzels
The favorite, potato chips, will account for 27 billion calories and 1.8 billion grams of fat. Naturally, the council recommends that a Super Bowl menu include no-fat and low-fat chips and dips.
The following list details the most unhealthy Super Bowl foods most common to parties.
Potato chips
1 cup
12 grams of fat
175 calories
Pepperoni pizza
One slice
10 grams of fat
228 calories
Chicken wings
12 wings
40 grams of fat
600 calories
Chocolate chip cookies
1 cookie
10 grams of fat
210 calories
Roast beef sub
1 foot-long sub
25 grams of fat
225 calories
At a glance
Men’s Health magazine offers up-to-date grocery and menu information at its Eat This, Not That site: eatthis.menshealth.com. In June, the Web site ranked the Worst Super Bowl foods.
Here’s a sample.
Party Mix
Chex Mix Traditional (2/3 cup)
130 calories
4 g fat (0.5 g saturated)
380 mg sodium
Chip Dip
Lay’s Creamy Ranch Dip (2 Tbsp)
60 calories
5 g fat (2.5 g saturated)
240 mg sodium
Worst Wings
Papa John’s Spicy Buffalo Wings (5)
500 calories
10 g saturated fat
2,100 mg sodium
Sub
Quizno’s Large Prime Rib Cheese-steak (with cheese and dressing)
1490 calories
88 g fat (21 g saturated fat, 1.5 g trans fat)
2675 mg sodium
Potato Chips
Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream (~11 chips)
160 calories
11 g fat (1.5 g saturated)
230 mg sodium
Delivery Pizza
Papa John’s 6-inch Personal Pan Pizza Meat Lover’s
900 calories
50 g fat (19 g saturated fat, 1 g trans fat)
2,530 mg sodium
Worst Frozen Pizza
DiGiorno for One Pepperoni
770 calories
35 g fat (14 g saturated, 3 g trans fat)
1,430 mg sodium
Worst Popcorn
Smart Food White Cheddar Popcorn (1 ¾ cups)
160 calories
10 g fat (2 g saturated)
290 mg sodium
