Fiber One Oats & Peanut Butter Chewy Bars

Warning: this review goes there.

The Wikipedia page for dietary fiber is pretty gross. It has phrases like “fermented in the colon.” But honestly, it’s good to understand what these things can do for you. When faced with the gratuitous amount of choices in the granola bar aisle, you may as well go for something that’s good for your insides in addition to getting you through to your next meal. We seriously do not want you falling down at your desk or during your bar shift.

Fiber One boasts that their bars pack in 35 percent daily value of fiber—as do many of their competitors and generics, so your choice could be a matter of taste, price and brand loyalty. Did you know that the secret fibrous ingredient in a Fiber One Chewy Bar is chicory root? (Well, it’s a secret if you’ve never bothered to look at the ingredients list.) Chicory isn’t just for coffee anymore, friends. It has inulin, stuff that helps keep you regular. In fact, so regular, that there are comment boards across the internet with folks complaining about—and rejoicing at—their increased flatulence rate. And with a casual comparison to our local supermarket brand, we are now feeling their pain. Sorry, TMI, but you were warned.

Flavorwise, the Oat & Peanut Butter is not as sweet as the Oats & Caramel variety. And peanut butter is healthier since it has more protein, right? Still, this peanut butter comes in the forms of “chips” and “drizzle” and definitely has more correlation to candy than does the creamy goodness you finger out of a Jiff jar. And at 9 grams of sugar—which comes from high fructose corn syrup’s mellower cousin, high maltose corn syrup—each bar will still balance the blood levels without sending you into shock.

The oats are more in charge of the texture than the flavor. Bound together by their chewy force field, they are the muscle of this snack. They are the fillers and satisfiers of your hunger. Like a respectable Rice Krispie treat, you can feel and hear the crunch and crisp without the threat of breaking your jaw or knocking out a tooth. Bless the inventor of chewy granola bars.

Overall, a tasty snack with benefits to have on hand. Though perhaps try one at home first to see how your system reacts.