For a lot of people, Nutella is synonymous with happiness and it is literally present everywhere, from donuts and pancakes to cookies and biscuits. However, it appears that this popular hazelnut cocoa spread is bad for our health because it contains highly processed ingredients like milk, sugar, cocoa, and hazelnuts, as well as soy lecithin. Believe it or not, several tbsp of this spread supply your body with whooping 200 calories; unfortunately, for a lot of people, few tbsp is just a starting point!
Other Ingredients in Nutella
This well-known hazelnut spread also contains vanillin and palm oil. Regarding the soy lecithin, it is a non-fermented and GMO type of soy which our bodies cannot digest properly. Nutella will not just up your caloric intake, but your fat and sugar levels too (a tbsp of it has 11 grams of fat and 21 grams of sugar).
Though many will associate vanillin with vanilla, they are not one and the same. Vanilla is a stress reliever and a mood booster whereas vanillin is its imitation or vanilla flavour. It has a poor quality and it is produced to taste like vanilla. It contains unlabeled MSG which may lead to ALS; it is considered to have no nutritive values whatsoever and it triggers brain chemicals similar to those linked with addiction.
Palm oil in Nutella is less healthy than other vegetable oils because it is not easy for digestion and it can trigger toxicity in the lungs, liver, heart, and kidneys. According to the CDC, it can elevate the blood cholesterol too, which is a predisposition for heart illness. Sadly, it is not just humans that are being injured by the devastating effects of palm oil, but animals too! They are facing extinction due to their habitats being destroyed by the production of palm oil.
Healthier Variant of Nutella
Unhealthy Nutella does not mean that we should stop consuming hazelnut spreads! Believe it or not, there are healthier variants out there that you can prepare at the comfort of your own home, of course, with healthy ingredients. Check out our favourite hazelnut spread recipe below:
8 oz.of roasted, skinless hazelnuts
1/3 cup of cocoa powder
A cup of powdered sugar
2 tbsp of hazelnut oil
A tsp of vanilla extract
1/8 tsp of salt
Preparation: Watch this video to see the whole process in detail!