Try these bars to help support your fertility nutrition journey!
As a registered dietitian, women’s health speaker, and fertility nutritionist in Orlando, I am super picky about the protein bars I recommend to my clients at Nutrition Awareness. Why? Most of them are full of artifical junk, inflammatory ingredients, and fillers that leave you unsatisfied.
The good news is there are more and more food companies making protein bars that actually support your gut health, fertility, and anti-inflammatory lifestyle.
Below are my 5 favorites that you can buy at Publix, Whole Foods, Sprouts, or Amazon!
Aloha Bars
If you’ve worked with me, there’s a good chance I’ve recommended Aloha Bars to you! They’re not only delicious, but their texture is softer than RxBars (which can be too chewy for some!) Plus, they have 12 g of protein and only have 5 g of sugar.
Does it surprise you a dietitian would recommend a protein bar with sugar? It shouldn’t! I’d rather have my clients consume a little real sugar as part of a balanced diet than artifical sweeteners like sucralose, which can increase your cravings and appetite.
Another reason Aloha Bars made the list is because they have 6g of fiber, which aids in digestion, gut health, and even hormone metabolism! The average woman needs at least 24 g of fiber per day, which means one Aloha Bar meets 25% if your needs!
Try my favorite flavor of Aloha Bars here!
RxBars
The crème de la crème of healthy protein bars is hands down RxBars. They’re so clean, boasting only nuts, dates, salt, egg whites, and natural flavors on their ingredients label.
Not only are they packed with fiber and protein, but they have NO added sugar or artifical dyes. Plus, there’s a flavor for everyone: the chocolate girlies love the cocoa and sea salt while the fruit-lovin gals can enjoy blueberry and trawberry.
Just avoid the RxBars with Oats- they’re higher in sugar and the taste isn’t worth it in my opinon.
Try the best RxBar flavor varieties here!
Perfect Bars
Never has a bar kept me as mentally and physically satisfied as a Perfect Bar. They taste amazing, so my brain is sending me signals to scrounge around for more food. Plus, they’re packed with 12-15g protein and healthy fats, both which help us feel fuller for longer. Snacks that keep you from scrounging around the kitchen for processed junk food 1-2 hours later are not it.
The ingredients in Perfect Bars are pretty simple: nut butters, eggs, honey, milk, coconut, and various fruits and veggies. For the women avoiding gluten and soy, these hit the spot.
The potential downside: these have more added sugar than any other bar I recommend. The sugar comes from organic honey, which doesn’t mean much because sugar will still impact our insulin. So if you’re trying to lower blood sugars, I’d choose a different bar. If you’re relatively active, the benefits of this bar (protein, healthy fat, fiber, ingredients) outweigh the sugar content.
Psst- you can keep it light with a Perfect Bar Mini. I eat these after a meal when I want something sweet but nutritious.
Try Perfect Bars here!
Jacob Bars
Another winner with a whopping 20 grams of protein! Jacob Bars (not be confused with David Bars, which I do not recommend for fertility nutrition), have simple ingredients: grass-fed whey protein, honey, beef-tallow, dates, unsweetened chocolate, nut butters, and salt. Not bad!
If you have a dairy-intolerance, avoid this. While they have 9g of added sugar from the honey, it’s hard to find a quality protein bar with more than 12g of protein and less than 250 calories. I suppose that’s why these are also some of the most expensive protein bars I’ve seen!
As an Orlando fertility nutritionist, I’d recommend these 2-3x a week as part of a balanced diet low in added sugar.
Try Jacob Bars here!
The Only Bar (Honorable Mention)
Because these only have 5 g of protein, it’s hard to classify them as a protein bar. But when it comes to nutrition for fertility, I like to look at my client’s entire diet (not just one food). What’s most important for any woman or man trying to concieve is eating an anti-inflammatory diet. That means eating mostly minimally processed, whole foods. The Only Bar by Truvani has only 5 ingredients made from whole foods!!!Unreal.
Plus, they taste soooo dang good. I’d recommend these to anyone who craves baked goods but needs a healthier alternative to cookies and brownies. Add protein by crumbling them and eat them on unsweetened, Greek yogurt or spread almond butter on top.
Try my favorite flavor of The Only Bar here!
Final Fertility Nutritionist Thoughts
Fertility, pregnancy, and post-partum can be stressful at times, so please don’t create more stress on your body by fretting over what you ate or didn’t eat. It’s counterproductive to your fertility goals. Instead, give yourself lots of grace while striving to choose better foods, one day at a time.
If you’d like to cut through all the stress and diet mumbo jumbo, I’d love to help you. As Orlando’s Fertility Nutritionist and registered dietitian, I’ll help you create your personalized fertility diet plan and supplement plan so you can balance hormones, get pregnant, and feel amazing.
✨ Book an initial consultation with me here —> in-person or virtual!
About the Author: This article was written by nutrition speaker, registered dietitian, and author Kait Richardson. As a weight loss and women’s nutrition expert, she is available for 1:1 nutrition consults and speaking at company wellness programs & retreats . Check out her book, How to Eat Like a Normal Person: A Guide to Overcoming the All-or-Nothing Mindset with Food & Diet.
