What makes a snack healthy?

• Nutritionally dense
• High in fiber
• Low in calories
• Whole grains
• No artificial additives
• Little to no added sugar
• No trans or saturated fats
• Low sodium
• Minimal ingredients
• Preservative free

Choosing healthiest snack foods

So how can you satisfy your hunger without wreaking havoc on your health (or your waistline) when you’re out and about? Skip the chips and bypass the Butterfingers in favor of the healthiest packaged snack foods you can find in your local vending machine. Look for:

• Energy bars
• Nuts
• Whole grain, baked or veggie chips
• Dried or squeezable fruits
• Dark chocolate
• Low-sodium
• Low-fat
• Lack of preservatives and additives
• Clean ingredients

In 2021, the healthiest vending machine foods include plant-based or vegan snacks, high protein and whole foods. Plant-based diets are becoming more and more popular as people focus on healthier eating and clean ingredients, and high-protein foods can boost energy levels. Of course, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy carbs or the occasional treat. It just means making better choices. Here are 10 options to get you started on the road toward selecting healthier vending machine snacks.

10 Healthy Vending Machine Snack Foods

1. Savory Wild Vegan Portabella Mushroom Jerky. Perfect for vegans and vegetarians who crave meaty taste and texture, this mushroom jerky includes 10 grams of protein.

2. That’s it. These delicious, chewy fruit strips contain two real fruit servings––and that’s truly it. No preservatives, sugars or concentrates. Just 100% delicious.

3. Barnana Peanut Butter Dipped Banana Bites. Made from real bananas, these dried fruit bites pair perfectly with peanut butter for a delicious, sustainable, healthy vending snack.

4. Kodiak Cups. Available in a variety of flavors, just add water and microwave for a hearty, protein-packed breakfast or afternoon snack. Look for these in a Healthy YOU Vending SmartMart side vendor.

5. Biena Vegan Chickpea Puffs. Grain- and gluten-free puffs packed with six grams of plant-based protein, for a satisfying afternoon crunch.

6. EatSmart Veggie Crisps. Made with tomato, potato and spinach, these crunchy veggie chips contain just six grams of fat per serving.

7. LUNA Bars. Made with organic rolled oats and fruit, LUNA bars are protein-packed, gluten-free and taste-bud-friendly.

8. Oberto All-Natural Original Beef Jerky. For the meat eaters among us, this jerky features bold, smoked flavor and packs a tasty protein punch without added MSG.

9. Smartfood Delights White Cheddar Popcorn. Air-popped popcorn, real cheddar cheese, no artificial flavors or preservatives and just 35 calories per cup. Making smart choices is always in great taste.

10. Nature’s Bakery Double Chocolate Brownie. Sometimes there’s a craving that only chocolate will cure. These soft-baked, double-chocolate brownies are doubly delicious—and free of high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors, soy, nuts and dairy.

Choose Healthy YOU Vending

Everyone loves to snack, and convenience is everything when it comes to making healthy snack choices. Peek inside your local Healthy YOU Vending machine for better-for-you packaged snacks to eat when you’re trying to be healthy. Learn more.

Stock With Healthy Snacks

From organic options to healthy hydration choices, Healthy YOU Vending machine snacks and drinks provide consumers with an alternative to junk food that won’t weigh them down. Healthy vending machine snacks may include:

•  Nuts, seeds and jerky
•  Dried fruits, raisins and trail mix
•  Tuna and whole grain cracker kits
•  Organic chips and cookies
•  Energy bars and granola bars
•  Dark chocolate and organic lollipops

Most healthy vending options include the same popular healthy snacks and drinks you know and love, but in single-size servings. Natural food companies have always offered organic and healthy snack options, but even traditional food companies have added healthier options to their offerings over the past several years.

Focus on Healthy Snacking

There’s a nationwide trend toward making healthy choices, thanks to the evolution of clean eating, organic, gluten-free and other healthier eating habits. This trend isn’t going anywhere, especially when you consider many people spend 10 or more hours a day away from home due to work, school, errands and activities. The benefits of healthy snacking include:

• Increased nutrient intake
• Sustained energy levels
• Maintained blood sugar levels
• Hunger satisfaction to prevent overeating

Photo by: John Diez from Pexels

Promote Healthy Eating Habits

Easy access to nutrient-dense foods and healthy snacks is one of the best ways to prevent hunger, which can lead to overeating—especially too much junk food. While preparation is the best prevention, it’s not always feasible. In that case, having access to health vending machine snacks can be a beneficial option. Here are a few ways to be prepared:

•  Start your day with a hearty, nutritious breakfast, like oatmeal with a handful of dried fruit
•  Replace added-sugar drinks like soda with water, coconut water or pure fruit juices
•  Choose a trail mix made with nuts and fruit over chocolate-coated candy
•  Control portions with single-serving size snacks
•  Avoid over-snacking, by choosing a full meal from the Healthy YOU Vending SmartMart side vendor.

Choose Healthy YOU Vending for a Healthier You Healthy YOU Vending machines are no ordinary machines. Located in offices, health clubs, hospitals, schools and colleges, these healthy vending machines offer a great way to make healthier choices without much additional effort. It doesn’t get much easier than that!

Today’s vending machines have evolved far past candy bars and chips. Choose Healthy YOU Vending and put healthier options in your hands and within reach of the people you care about—your friends, family and community.

Click here to get Healthy YOU Vending at work or your business locations.

Or click here to learn more about becoming a Healthy YOU Vending operator.

But placing products in your vending machine without first carefully thinking about the customer and your goals will almost certainly lead to disappointing sales. Here are some tips for selecting a product mix that will help drive profitability and satisfaction in the vending industry.

Tailor the Product Mix to Each Vending Machine Location

Can you imagine how well gummy bears would sell in a gym? How about greasy potato chips? We suggest those unhealthy choices wouldn’t look too attractive in a setting where people are trying to feel their best. But healthy beef jerky or trail mix? Yeah, that’s better.

Customizing the products for each location is all part of the fun of owning and operating a vending machine business. But that’s often easier said than done. Need some pro tips to help you choose the right products?

Consider the BIG Picture

It’s truly important to know who is visiting your machines. If it’s in a gym, you’re likely selling to health-conscious consumers looking for a quick snack. Machines placed in office buildings may attract busy nine-to-fivers looking for a convenient meal replacement. However, this is all the “small picture.”

Considering the “big picture” means thinking about the demographics of the city or state in which you’re doing business. What’s considered healthy in one state may differ completely from that of another state. For instance, Oregon is a stronghold of healthy lifestyles. While beef jerky may be considered healthy in one state, it may be frowned upon in Oregon—where organic plant-based jerky is preferred instead.

Restock Machines During Business Hours

Part of the appeal of owning a vending machine business lies in its flexibility; to restock and manage your machines when it’s convenient for you. After all, it’s your business. But being there at the same time as your customers can be an indispensable source of information. Who’s better to ask what your customers want more than . . . your customers?

In fact, restocking your machines while potential customers are around can help you secure more buyers. Let’s say you’re restocking your machine and someone approaches you to ask if you’d stock some gluten-free snacks. They have celiac disease and can’t have gluten, they explain. The fact is, some vending operators develop close-knit relationships with their customers through these very interactions. These mutually beneficial relationships mean you offer the snacks or foods your customers need and they, in turn, help support your business.

Offer Healthy Options 

The days of unhealthy vending machines is (gracefully) coming to a rapid end. Consumers are becoming increasingly health-conscious and demanding healthy, convenient choices. In 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) established its Smart Snacks in School national nutrition standards. These standards limit the amount of fat, sugar, sodium and calorie content of any foods or drinks sold in vending machines at schools. But these standards were just the beginning of the healthy choices movement.

The National Automatic Merchandising Association’s (NAMA) members recently agreed to increase the number of healthy options in their machines from 24% to 33%. In reality, USDA’s Smart Snacks in School standards and NAMA’s recent agreement are simply a reflection of changing dietary preferences, rather than an attempt at reform. Simply put, consumers are requesting healthful foods.

Use Technology to Your Advantage

Healthy YOU Vending machines come with, among many other technologies, our proprietary eManage Vending Management Software. Our eManage software allows you to monitor how much of each product sold in your vending machines over a given period. It also lets you track your daily gross sales, net profit and understand your customers’ preferred payment methods.

So, when the CLIF Bars are flying out of that machine in a gym, you’re ready to restock it with more. Likewise, you’ll be able to easily see the products that aren’t selling as well and replace those slots with different items. Oh, and it’s all from the comfort of wherever you choose to manage your company, be that on your kitchen table, couch or . . . bed!

Take Your Goals and Objectives into Account

Now that you know how to pick a razor-focused, customized product mix that’s sure to please your consumer base, it’s time to reflect on the goals and objectives you set out to achieve with your business. Yes, you can put anything you want in your snack vending machines (well, not anything), but what products will help you ultimately meet your goal? Establishing your goals will both help drive profitability and your satisfaction as an owner—knowing you’re contributing to your community in a meaningful way, for example.

If you want to help improve your community, consider offering healthy snacks, drinks and entrées—instead of the junk food found in traditional vending machines. Provide your customers with all the wholesome choices they desire with our SmartMart Side Vendor. Want to help protect your community? Offer personal hygiene essentials, over-the-counter medicines and personal protective equipment (PPE) in our Wellness Center Side Vendor.

In addition to your personal business goals and objectives, take the goals and objectives of each individual vending machine location into consideration. Many employers understand the value of employee wellness programs: increased employee productivity and lower health-related costs. With the goal of their employees’ wellness in mind, employers are increasingly looking for ways to help their personnel make healthier dietary choices. Healthy vending is answering this call by providing wholesome, convenient options in workplaces around the country.

As another example, the goal of a hotel is to help ensure their guests have a comfortable stay. But what happens when one of their guests forgets something essential, such as a toothbrush, deodorant or shaving kit? Instead of sending their guest trudging down the road to the nearest convenience store, they prefer having those products available near the lobby. Vending machines can be just the solution to these common situations.

The point is to carefully consider not just your own goals and objectives, but those of each location you serve.

What Do You Put in a Vending Machine?

Ultimately, what you choose to offer in your vending machines is up to you. And that’s all part of the fun and freedom of owning and operating a vending business. But to truly be profitable and have high satisfaction in your business pursuit, it’s important to carefully consider your personal goals and objectives, the needs of your customers and the benefits you provide to each location. If you’re interested in joining the world of healthy vending, contact Healthy YOU Vending today.

Nobody looks forward to meeting their nutritional needs for the day from a traditional vending machine. Those fat-filled confectionaries, sugary sodas and greasy snacks are a far cry from proper sustenance. You know it. Your body knows it.

The Problem with Sodium

Potato chips have long been popular as a quick snack. However, the substantial sodium content of the “classic” leave-grease-on-your-hands potato chip can have some disastrous consequences on your health. Too much sodium opens the door to problems you simply don’t want.

• Stroke
• Stomach cancer
• Kidney disease<
• Heart failure

. . . and Refined Carbs

The midday crash. The blank-stare-at-your-computer head bob. The fact is, refined (simple) carbs can give you a quick shot of energy, but their impact quickly vanishes—leaving you daydreaming about nap time. Traditional vending machines are filled with refined carbs: packaged doughnuts, pastries, candy, sodas, snack cakes and even some chips. The CliffsNotes version behind why these simple carbs make us so tired is that they quickly spike blood sugar, only to let it crash soon after.

Not only do refined carbs leave us wondering about how we can get away with a nap under our desks, they’re also linked to an increased risk of some serious health conditions.

• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Cardiovascular disease
• Insulin resistance
• Inflammatory disorders

The Old Norm

The problem is that most vending machines are filled with sodium-heavy snacks and sugary treats and drinks. The Center for Science in the Public Interest studied 1,420 vending machines in 251 schools. What it found wasn’t especially promising for healthy eating from a vending machine. According to the study, 73% of beverages and 83% of snack options were of poor nutritional quality. More specifically, of all the machines reviewed, 42% of vending slots were taken by candy and 25% of the other slots contained regular chips of low nutritional quality. Did the study reveal healthy options in the machines? Yes, but just 5% of the slots were occupied by low-fat chips or pretzels and 2% by granola bars.

So, there you are, staring at the glowing lights of the vending machine, wishing you didn’t forget your lunch. The options are limited and you know that anything you choose will leave you feeling sluggish and weighed down. Furthermore, if you’re one of the many who have gone gluten-free, you could find yourself with no choices at all from the “old norm” of vending machines.

The New Norm

But there’s a healthier alternative to the “old norm” vending machine. Healthy You Vending provides all of the convenience of traditional vending, only with options that are better for you. Improved stamina, brainpower, clarity and energy are just a few of the benefits that can come with healthier eating.

Encouraging healthier snacking in schools can help curb the childhood obesity epidemic. And promoting healthy eating or snacking in the workplace as a part of employee wellness initiatives can lead to increased productivity and, ultimately, boost the bottom line.

Top 10 Healthiest Vending Machine Foods

1 – Newman’s Own Organic Raisins

A 1/4 cup serving of these organic dried grapes contains 120 calories. These handheld treats come filled with iron, calcium, vitamin C and even a bit of protein.

2 – Materne GoGo squeeZ Applesauce

This convenient, squeezable applesauce isn’t just for kids. One 90-gram pouch comes with a slim 70 calories, 16 grams of healthy carbohydrates and 3 grams of fiber.

3 – KIND Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar

Who’s going to turn down chocolate and peanut butter? And KIND bars are healthy! One 40-gram bar includes 200 calories, 7 grams of protein and only 6 grams of sugar. With an array of available flavors, there’s one to suit everyone’s tastes.

4 – Pirate’s Booty Aged White Cheddar Popcorn

A healthy, crunchy alternative to chips, Pirate’s popcorn can fill you up without weighing you down. A 1/2-ounce bag packs only 70 calories and 1 gram of total sugars. Plus, one package delivers important protein, potassium and calcium.

5 – Primal Strips Hickory Smoked Beef Jerky

A classic standby for meeting your protein needs on the go, beef jerky is, indeed, still a healthy snacking option. A 28-gram package of Primal’s Hickory Smoked jerky comes with less than 100 calories, but packs 10 grams of protein. And Primal even has tasty options that pack the same protein punch as its meaty counterparts for vegans and vegetarians.

6 – Back to Nature Honey Graham Sticks

If the taste of graham doesn’t take you back to your childhood days, nothing will. With a touch of honey, Back to Nature’s Honey Graham Sticks are an irresistible and healthy snack. Fourteen sticks contain only 130 calories and a mere 8 grams of sugar. Plus, those 14 sticks deliver 2 grams of protein, all without cholesterol or harmful trans fats.

7 – Tasty Bite Mushroom Masala

Think vending machines are only for snacks and drinks? Think again. Healthy YOU Vending’s SmartMart Side Vendor can vend a variety of healthy entrées, side dishes and even some essential non-food items. Tasty Bite’s Mushroom Masala is a delicious, filling and healthy alternative to wholesome snacks. Pop it in the microwave and in one minute, treat yourself to a healthy lunch. One 10-ounce serving carries a slim 240 calories, but comes with 3 grams of protein and ample servings of vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium and iron.

8 – LUNA Bars

Made with organic rolled oats and other fruit ingredients, LUNA bars are sure to please anybody’s taste buds. Many of LUNA flavors come with an impressive amount of protein and are non-GMO and gluten-free.

9 – Planters Sweet & Salty Trail Mix

Yes, peanuts are high in calories. And trail mix is usually packed with “goobers.” Planter’s Sweet & Salty variety is no exception. But, the fact is, peanuts are healthy when consumed in moderation—notwithstanding their calorie content. That’s because they are a rich source of protein and fiber, both of which help you feel full longer.

10 – Savory Wild Vegan Portabella Mushroom Jerky

Calling all vegans and vegetarians! (and anybody else interested in healthy, plant-based foods.) Savory Wild’s Portabella Mushroom Jerky is made without hydrogenated oils or preservatives. One 57-gram package comes with 160 calories, 10 grams of protein and only 19 total grams of sugars.

More Than a Fad

It’s not just those who are tuning in to the nightly news or searching for better health information on the web who are choosing to eat healthier. More and more consumers are making the decision every day to cut sugar and sodium and embrace wholesome alternatives that are part of the “new norm.”

Healthy YOU Vending has set the trend in the healthy vending industry for more than 20 years. We help our independent operators offer wholesome snacks, drinks and entrées to busy on-the-goers in offices, schools, gyms, hotels and many other locations throughout the country. If you’re tired of the “old norm” machine at your place of work or school, contact Healthy YOU Vending.

Our healthy vending machine system is completely geared toward healthier, natural and organic vending choices that cater to all taste buds and dietary requirements. As companies realize that the average adult spends more of their waking hours at work than anywhere else, they’ve learned that HealthyYOU Vending is a convenient option they can really get behind. (Get healthy vending at work.)

U.S. business and schools across the country are working diligently with students and employees to promote a healthier lifestyle. Add in the typical desire for convenience and instant gratification (along with our busy lifestyles) it’s no surprise that U.S. companies and schools are embracing the specialization of healthy vending machines. HealthyYOU Vending machines offer:

• High capacity: Each HealthyYOU Vending machine holds up to 337 healthy snacks, drinks and meals for a variety of convenient and healthy choices.

• Versatility: Provide customers with 21 snack selections, 8 drink options and 16 entrée and side dishes. The optional SmartMart side vendor adds only 16 inches to the width of HealthyYOU Vending machines, so it’s compact enough to fit anywhere.

• Variety: Stock your HealthyYOU Vending machines with a mix of healthy products consumers love, such as nutritional bars, chips and pretzels, dried fruits, nuts and seeds, dark chocolate and other healthier sweet treats, plus meals to satisfy hearty appetites.

• Convenient payment options: HealthyYOU Vending machines accept cash, coins, credit/debit cards and smartphone payments such as ApplePay, Google Wallet and PayPal.

The bottom line? People are eating smarter and healthier, and HealthyYOU Vending machine operators can satisfy that demand. Learn how to become a HealthyYOU Vending operator, and make a big difference in your community!

Desktop Dining

The American Dietetic Association (ADA) and ConAgra Foods’ Home Food Safety program found that 27% of U.S. workers purchase food and bring it back to their desk to eat in order to save time during their workday. Another survey by Career Builder found that 10% of employees are purchasing their lunch from a vending machine at least once a week. Yet research shows that sitting at your desk all day can lead to weight gain, which is one reason why offering healthier meal options is important.

Offer Customers More Options

HealthyYOU Vending healthy entrées and side dishes adds a whole new dimension to vending machine lunches and desktop dining. Consumers want meals that are easy to prepare, tasty, and healthier than grabbing junk food from a traditional vending machine. As manufacturers realize the growing trend toward healthier eating, they’re creating a bigger and better variety of portable meals. From hearty soups to healthy entrees, the variety of microwaveable healthy meals extends across borders, with such diverse flavors as Thai, Mexican, Chinese, Indian and other delicious foods available without ever leaving the office, or waiting for a delivery guy to show up (expecting a tip!).

Increase Earning Capacity

With increased offerings comes the potential for HealthyYOU Vending operators to increase their income earning capacity. Our vending operators who choose to purchase the optional entrée/side dish vendor have an added advantage, as HealthyYOU Vending has one of the only machines in the industry to accommodate this add-on feature. The optional entrée/side dish vendor has a capacity for up to 80 healthier entrees, soups, chili, pasta, hot and cold cereals, plus fruit cups and desserts. For added convenience, operators have the option of setting up meal deals so hungry employees can get a meal, drink and dessert or snack all in one purchase—and HealthyYOU Vending’s cashless vending payment system makes it convenient for anyone to make a purchase with the swipe of a debit/credit card or the tap of a smartphone. This enables operators to command higher-profit vends in exchange for the convenience of healthier meals in the office.

The Bottom Line

Customers save time and money, employers save valuable production time, and HealthyYOU Vending operators have potential for increased earnings. It’s win-win across the board. Get an optional entree/side dish vendor for your HealthyYOU Vending machine today!

So when they started to look for an additional business opportunity, a healthy vending business seemed like a natural fit. They talked to a few healthy vending companies and even attended one competitor’s online seminar, but most companies only offered franchise models. The Grays didn’t want to pay for the cost of their machines PLUS a franchise fee. That’s when they ran into information about HealthyYOU Vending.

“We talked to other healthy vending companies but they didn’t seem as knowledgeable about the business,” said Hudson. “They just weren’t as friendly and helpful as HealthyYOU Vending and they didn’t have the vending (tracking) software.”

The Grays decided to fly out the week before their scheduled Healthy YOUniversity training to check out the machines for themselves. They wanted to make sure the machines were as high quality as the sales reps had explained — and find out for themselves how the machines worked. “We were very impressed with the people there,” said Hudson upon meeting the team at HealthyYOU Vending. And they were very impressed with the machines.

Fast forward two years and Snack Smart Healthy Vending has quickly grown their business from an initial purchase of 5 vending machines to 31 machines in Tennessee and Kentucky. “It’s been a lot of hard work, but it’s also been fun and interesting,” said Hudson. They placed all 31 machines themselves, since HealthyYOU Vending wasn’t offering their placement services at the time. Some of their vending locations include a YMCA, health department, car dealerships, schools, and the Fort Campbell army base, home of the 101^st Airborne Division.

They approached Fort Campbell at just the right time, as the army was seeking to implement its Fit Pick standards in its base hospital and take out all the junk-food vending machines. Snack Smart Healthy Vending placed their first machines in the hospital on a pilot program, working through the Army Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES). Snack Smart Healthy Vending now has 13 healthy vending machines at various locations on base and 5 in the base hospital.

After an initial pilot in a local school district, the Grays decided against placing healthy vending machines in schools. However, when they were approached by the district’s new nutritionist in 2015 and invited to participate in the bid process to place healthy vending machines, the timing was right. They won the contract and now have 11 machines in the Clarksville/Montgomery County School District for the 2015-16 school year (5 in high schools and 6 in the district’s operational facilities).

Hudson said the experience has been very encouraging since the students themselves have been requesting healthy options. “A lot of kids are choosing to drink v8 Fusion 100% juice products versus a soda,” he said. Frito-Lay makes reduced-fat chips (that meet school nutritional standards) that also sell very well in their vending machines.

Hudson also noted that they’ve also found some unique uses for the optional entrée/side dish vendor for the HealthyYOU Vending machines. “Calling it an entrée unit is not giving all its potential uses; think “out of the box” a little bit,” suggested Hudson. They currently use entrée units in three different ways: 1) As a traditional entrée unit; 2) Stock and sell extra chips because they sell out of them so fast; and 3) Sell non-food items. Their entrée unit at the YMCA stocks anything you might forget and need while at the gym: socks, ponytail holders, locks, cell phone chargers, lip balm, swim goggles, racquet balls, etc. “The items sell very well,” said Hudson.

“Overall it’s been a great learning experience. It’s been an opportunity to grow and do something on our own time, “ explained Betsy. She said that HealthyYOU Vending’s software system has helped them grow their healthy vending business very efficiently, still giving them time to run their daycare business.

Top left banner photo by by Amy Newcomb | Courier

NUTS AND SEEDS
Nuts and seeds are full of nutrients like healthy fats, protein and fiber. These energy-dense snacks are filling and can keep you satiated for a long time — and just a small portion is enough to fight off hunger without consuming too many calories.

HealthyYOU Vending recommends:

1. Lightly roasted, organically grown Eden Foods Dry Roasted Pistachios deliver a dose of healthy fats, fiber and protein that make a satisfying snack any time of day.

2. Sahale Almonds with Cranberries, Honey + Sea Salt satisfy a craving for something different — and delicious — with whole almonds and cranberries, toasted sesame seeds, and a hint of honey and sea salt.

NUTRITION BARS
Snacking doesn’t get much easier or more portable than this. And with so many different types of nutrition bars to choose from, you’re sure to find one to satisfy your taste.

HealthyYOU Vending recommends:

3. ClifBar: Crunch Peanut Butter is the number one selling power bar; here at HealthyYOU Vending, we like Chocolate Chip. Whatever flavor you choose, ClifBars are made with wholesome, organic ingredients that’ll power you through a century bike ride — or the afternoon office slump.

4. Larabar Cashew Cookie: This two-ingredient treat (cashews and dates…that’s it!) packs a simple yet delicious 6 grams of protein that will fight the cookie monster in you!

5. KIND Dark Chocolate Nuts and Sea Salt: Sweet? Salty? Can’t decide? Satisfy both cravings with this blend of almonds, peanuts and walnuts drizzled with anti-oxidant rich dark chocolate.

6. Kashi Ripe Strawberry Cereal Bar: These soft-baked cereal bars are free of refined sweeteners, so you can feel good about satisfying your snack craving.

FRUITS
When you forget to grab an apple on the way out the door to school or work, dehydrated fruit can really cure the craving for something sweet without resorting to sugar-added treats.

HealthyYOU Vending snacks for vending machine recommends:

7. Bare Fuji Red Crunchy Apple Chips give a whole new meaning to grabbing a bag of chips, while satisfying your craving for crunchy AND sweet.

8. Funky Monkey Bananamon has all the great taste and health benefits of a fresh banana, with the crunch and portability to satisfy hunger on the go.

CHIPS, PRETZES AND CRACKERS

When you just can’t fight the snack monster grumbling in your stomach and you just have to turn to chips, you can still win by choosing a healthier version.

HealthyYOU Vending recommends:

9. Stacy’s Simply Naked Pita Chips: Simple yet satisfying, dressed in nothing but sea salt.
10. Pirate Veggie Booty: Puffed rice, corn, spinach and kale are baked to perfection in this light and tasty snack.

Look for these snacks, and many others, in a HealthyYOU Vending machine near you. Want to become a location and bring convenient and healthy snacks to your employees and customers? Learn more at https://www.healthyyouvending.com/.

The proposed warning label came on the heels of California’s obesity and diabetes epidemic, which has taken a toll on public health and healthcare costs. The label would be similar to those found on cigarettes and alcohol, with the idea that consumers should be informed about the health problems associated with excessive sugar consumption.

Studies show that Americans tend to consume more sugar than we should, and that excessive sugar consumption can lead to a host of health diseases, including obesity and type 2 diabetes. The American Diabetes Association even recommends that people should avoid intake of sugar-sweetened beverages to help prevent diabetes. Liquid sugar in beverages such as soda, fruit punch and other soft drinks has been shown to raise blood glucose levels quickly and significantly. Just one 12-ounce can of regular soda has 40 grams of carbs — equivalent to 10 teaspoons of sugar. California Center for Public Health Advocacy’s executive director Harold Goldstein says it’s much easier to overindulge in sugar in liquid form than on the same amount found in food.

In New York, a ban on super-sized sugary drinks was overturned before it was able to take effect in 2013. Other cities and states have attempted to impose “soda tax” with limited success. New proposed legislation in New York aims at educating rather than banning, so consumers can make informed choices about what they purchase and consume.

Do you think sugary soft drinks should come with warning labels?

Note: *California’s SB 203 failed to gain enough votes in the Senate Health Committee yesterday (April 29, 2015), but the California Center for Public Health Advocacy indicates that they will continue to push for more education about the harmful effects of drinking excessive amounts of liquid sugar.