thunderstruck88
New member
Walking the midway of a fair or carnival is meant to be a fun family event, but nutritionally speaking, it's more of a haunted house. When the menu options include things like deep-fried candy bars, cheese-on-a-stick and cotton candy, it shouldn't come as a surprise that a day at the fair can quickly turn into a healthy eater's nightmare.
Unless you're the patron saint of balanced eating, it seems unlikely that you'll spend a day at the state fair and consume nary a corn dog. It's just what you do when you go to these types of events, right? Fine, enjoy a corn dog if you must (only 210 calories, according to FitSugar!).
Deep-fried candy bars. Here's the thing about fairs: They have a tendency to take something that's already too sweet, deep-fry it and add sugar to it. Does a Snickers bar with nearly 29 grams of sugar really need more sugar sprinkled on top? And that doesn't even address the whole "deep-fried" issue. According to The Consumerist, one of these has around 700 calories.
Giant turkey legs. I can already tell what you may be thinking: "Turkey is healthy! It's lean protein!" You're right on one count -- turkey is a healthy way to get your protein fix, but when it's deep-fried and served with skin in a humongous portion, it's not doing you any favors. In fact, just one is estimated to have more than 1,100 calories. That's five corn dogs!
Deep-fried butter. It's fat, dipped in dough and fried in fat. We told you about this one a couple of years ago, but we're still not over it. There's no official calorie count on this one, but keep in mind that before it's battered and deep fried, a stick of butter has about 800 calories and 88 grams of fat.
Chocolate-covered bacon. OK, I admit it. I'm intrigued by this creation from the Wisconsin State Fair. I like chocolate. I also like bacon. But together? Call me crazy, but I prefer my chocolate not filled with grease and processed meat. Bacon has about 60 calories a slice, while a tablespoon of chocolate has about 70 calories, so it's not the worst fair food you could eat, but stick to just one -- if you can stomach it.
Funnel cake. You thought deep-fried candy bars were bad? Funnel cake is even worse, with 760 calories. And that's before you add the jam, ice cream and whipped cream. Yikes.
Deep-fried macaroni and cheese. Mac 'n' cheese is a once-in-a-while treat as is. Fry it in fat? It becomes a once-in-a-lifetime-but-preferably-never kind of treat. With an estimated 610 calories, it's not the most fattening food on the list, but it is still one to avoid.
Spam curds. A hit at the Minnesota State Fair, Spam curds are basically Spam and cheese nuggets that are deep-fried. Oh, and they're topped off with ranch sauce. As if you needed it.
Deep-fried White Castle burger. Um, seriously? OK, a White Castle burger contains only 135 calories, but deep-frying it could triple that amount. Plus, it's served the classic American way -- with fries.
Unless you're the patron saint of balanced eating, it seems unlikely that you'll spend a day at the state fair and consume nary a corn dog. It's just what you do when you go to these types of events, right? Fine, enjoy a corn dog if you must (only 210 calories, according to FitSugar!).
Deep-fried candy bars. Here's the thing about fairs: They have a tendency to take something that's already too sweet, deep-fry it and add sugar to it. Does a Snickers bar with nearly 29 grams of sugar really need more sugar sprinkled on top? And that doesn't even address the whole "deep-fried" issue. According to The Consumerist, one of these has around 700 calories.
Giant turkey legs. I can already tell what you may be thinking: "Turkey is healthy! It's lean protein!" You're right on one count -- turkey is a healthy way to get your protein fix, but when it's deep-fried and served with skin in a humongous portion, it's not doing you any favors. In fact, just one is estimated to have more than 1,100 calories. That's five corn dogs!
Deep-fried butter. It's fat, dipped in dough and fried in fat. We told you about this one a couple of years ago, but we're still not over it. There's no official calorie count on this one, but keep in mind that before it's battered and deep fried, a stick of butter has about 800 calories and 88 grams of fat.
Chocolate-covered bacon. OK, I admit it. I'm intrigued by this creation from the Wisconsin State Fair. I like chocolate. I also like bacon. But together? Call me crazy, but I prefer my chocolate not filled with grease and processed meat. Bacon has about 60 calories a slice, while a tablespoon of chocolate has about 70 calories, so it's not the worst fair food you could eat, but stick to just one -- if you can stomach it.
Funnel cake. You thought deep-fried candy bars were bad? Funnel cake is even worse, with 760 calories. And that's before you add the jam, ice cream and whipped cream. Yikes.
Deep-fried macaroni and cheese. Mac 'n' cheese is a once-in-a-while treat as is. Fry it in fat? It becomes a once-in-a-lifetime-but-preferably-never kind of treat. With an estimated 610 calories, it's not the most fattening food on the list, but it is still one to avoid.
Spam curds. A hit at the Minnesota State Fair, Spam curds are basically Spam and cheese nuggets that are deep-fried. Oh, and they're topped off with ranch sauce. As if you needed it.
Deep-fried White Castle burger. Um, seriously? OK, a White Castle burger contains only 135 calories, but deep-frying it could triple that amount. Plus, it's served the classic American way -- with fries.
