Power Bar Pria for a Snack
Written: Jul 31 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Tastes great, 23 vitamins, low in sugar.
Cons: It is small with very little protein.
The Bottom Line: I am rating this 4 stars for its snack value. It tastes good and has a lot of vitamins. Reach for it instead of the Twix bar.
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| jo.com's Full Review: Power Bar PowerBar Pria Bar - 15 Pack from Road Ru... |
The last bar I reviewed was the Power Bar Protein Plus bar and I was fairly impressed with it. When I saw the new Pria by Power Bar for $.79 in the grocery store and figured out that it was only 2 points on Weight Watchers, I bought a couple of Pria Chocolate Peanut Crunch bars
About the bar:
Power Bar® calls this bar a “Deliciously Smarter nutritional energy snack bar…..that keeps you going through the day.” I don’t know about you, but nothing keeps me going through the day and it wasn’t the amount of carbohydrates or protein that made me buy this. It was the price, the points and the fact that it has vitamins and minerals – 23 to be exact.
I never noticed this on other Power Bars but if you look on the side of it you will read the words “dare to be different.” I am not sure what audience they are targeting but I got a kick out of this motto, which sounds like it is targeting a group who doesn't try new things.
This small, 28 gram, .98 ounces (less than one ounce) bar has 110 calories
3 grams of fat (2 of which are saturated)
30 mg of sodium
16 grams of carbohydrates
5 grams of sugar
5 grams of protein. It seems the 5 grams of protein are made up of 4 grams of soy protein since we are told that it contains 4 grams of soy protein.
Compare that with the Power Bar Protein Plus which has 290 calories in a 2 3/4 ounce bar. I asked my accountant husband to calculate the relationship between 110 to 290 (calories between the two) and .98 to 2 3/4 (size) and he told me that they were about equivalent so the two bars are fairly equal regarding calories to size. But still going with my accountant the Protein Plus bar has about 6 times the amount of sodium and in order to follow this same equation the Protein Plus Bar should have closer to 15 grams of sugar as opposed to the 23 grams of sugar it does have. The Pria bar only has 5 grams; however Pria has no fiber; the Plus bar has 2 grams.
I really shouldn’t be comparing them, though because the carbohydrate/protein ratio and amounts really don’t make the Pria anything but a snack and in fact on the back of the package it says, “A crispy, chewy snack covered in chocolatey coating that keeps you going through the day."
There is a clear expiration date on the package, which tore easily, when I went to open it.
The flavors and ingredients:
There are six flavors from which to choose: Chocolate Peanut Crunch, Chocolate Honey Graham, French Vanilla Crisp, Double Chocolate Cookie, Strawberry Shortcake and Créme Caramel Crisp.
Ingredients: (from the website: http://www.powerbar.com/products/pria/cpeanut.asp)
Brown Rice Syrup, Chocolatey Coating (Sugar, Fractionated Palm Kernel Oil, Alkalized Cocoa, Whey Powder (From Milk), Nonfat Dry Milk, Soy Lecithin, Vanilla), Soy Crisps (Soy Protein Isolate, Rice Flour, Barley Malt, Salt), Rice Crisps (Rice Flour, Barley Malt, Rice Bran), Brown Rice Syrup Solids, Soy Protein Isolate, Natural Flavors, Whole Oats, Glycerin, Peanut Butter, Minerals: Calcium Carbonate, Calcium Phosphate, Magnesium Oxide, Ferrous Fumarate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Gluconate, Manganese Sulfate, Chromium Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Potassium Iodide, Sodium Molybdate, Vitamins: Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Vitamin E Acetate, Pantothenic Acid (Calcium Pantothenate), Vitamin B3 (Niacinamide), Vitamin B6 (Pyrodoxine Hydrochloride), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin A (Beta Carotene), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin Mononitrate), Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin K1, Vitamin B12. Made on equipment that also processes nuts.
Who is it for and what is it like?
I usually only recommend protein/energy/meal replacement bars for adults. In this case I wouldn't have a problem giving one to a child. These are so small and although there are vitamins in it and I usually suggest asking your doctor before you give your child vitamins, most are in the 10-15% range for daily requirement so I wouldn’t be too concerned that your child is getting too many vitamins. Vitamins C, E and B12 meet 60% of daily requirements so if your child takes a multivitamin you may want to check with his or her doctor just to make sure but I have a feeling your doctor will have no problem with this healthy snack for your child.
In fact, if it didn’t contain soy I would half jokingly say that the intended audience is children but the inclusion of and notation of soy would point to women as the target audience for these bars.
The bar is covered in delicious chocolate. It is crunchy like a Nestlé’s crunch bar or chocolate covered granola bar and is delicious. The little crunch pieces can be seen on the inside. I don’t think it is particularly chewy. There is a bit of stickiness inside it which might be considered chewy but don’t expect to chew. These melted in my mouth! If there is any aftertaste (I note this because there often is in energy bars.) it is very mild and in fact, I may only have noticed it because I was looking for it. My husband is usually nowhere near me when I write reviews but we were in the living room and I was on his laptop watching, what we hoped was the Yankees loosing the baseball game, and I had him taste test this. His words, “Delicious.”
The Protein Plus Bars have 38 grams of carbohydrates and 26 grams of protein. When I reviewed it I commented on how large they are and that 1/2 of them were enough. That is true. Looking at that, I would then say that the Pria Bar with 16 grams would almost equal 1/2 of a Plus bar and that is true. For me it is just too small to be anything more than a good snack.
With that in mind I would say that for $.79 (They were on sale – usually $.99) I would throw them in my gym and school bag as a snack or during a workout but there is not enough protein at 5 grams to make this a meal replacement bar. It doesn’t advertise itself as that, luckily.
The Pria Bar doesn’t give me quite the amount of energy the Protein Plus bar gave me most likely because there are 16 1/2 grams of sugar in 1/2 a bar (23 total) versus only 5 grams in the Pria bar so I didn’t get a sugar rush. That is a positive point. I really prefer to stay away from so much sugar. 16 grams of sugar a day or no more than that is what is recommended so ½ of the Plus bar would be my sugar for the day! The carbohydrate difference isn't huge when looking at the size of the Pria bar.
My final thoughts:
Once again I am amazed that I am going to recommend Power Bar Pria. It is delicious, has vitamins and minerals and soy, is low in sugar and will give you a bit of a boost although don’t count on it to carry you through the entire day! A great deal for the price and a low-calorie snack that is satisfying. I am recommending this as a snack.
I saw this after I wrote my review and it is from the website in the frequently asked questions area: “PowerBar® Pria™ is perfect for mid-day snacking when you're on-the-go and want a great-tasting energy boost that won't weigh you down. For exercise or intense activity, we recommend PowerBar® Performance or PowerBar® PowerGel®.:
If you have any questions about this bar, please feel free to leave me a comment or e-mail me.
Recommended:
Yes
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