15 products you probably thought were healthier than they actually are by Erin Brodwin on Feb 3, 2016, 5:04 PM Advertisement
 The next time you take a stroll down your grocery's "health food" aisle, take note: Most of what you're looking at may not really belong. In fact, many of the products we've come to accept as good for us have a fascinating history behind them that includes remarkable coincidences, clever advertisements, and even complex forces beyond our control, like war and immigration. Here are some of the brilliant marketing strategies behind some of our favorite "health" products: SEE ALSO: 17 'healthy habits' you're better off giving up DON'T MISS: Most dietary supplements are useless, but here are the ones you should take Peanut butter and jelly  The problem: The PB&J is a ubiquitous lunch item among American kids — there's a song about it, folks — but it's actually a less-healthy alternative to sandwiches made with hummus or lean meats. Peanut butter is high in fat; jelly is high in sugar. Slap those ingredients between two slices of white bread and you've got a sandwich that packs 20 grams of sugar, 14 grams fat (3.5 grams saturated), and 400 calories. Marketing origins: World War I rations officers, Welch's — which came out with Grapelade — and peanut companies that latched onto it. How it happened: The Great Depression popularized peanut butter on bread as a cheaper-than-meat substitute for protein. When it was combined with Welch's Grapelade — one of the first iterations of jelly — in the rations of WWI soldiers in the US, the PB&J became an official hit.
Fruit smoothies  The problem: Just because they pack lots of fruit, bottled smoothies and those sold at places like Jamba Juice are not necessarily healthy. But most are also incredibly high in sugar and calories. A 15-ounce bottle of Mighty Mango-flavored Naked Juice has 290 calories, 68 grams of carbs, and a whopping 57 grams of sugar — a 16-ounce bottle of Coke has 44 grams of sugar. Marketing origins: Bottled juice and smoothie companies that capitalize on consumers' desire for fresh, healthy foods. How it happened: The first blender was invented in the late 1930s, and Steve Kuhnau, who was reportedly experimenting with blending fruits and veggies to combat some of his own allergies and health problems, founded the first Smoothie King restaurant in Louisiana in 1973.
Cereal  The problem: Bowls of sugar-laden empty carbs got swapped for protein-rich components of the "balanced breakfast." A cup of Reese's Puffs, for example, has 160 calories, 4 grams of fat (1 gram saturated), 13 grams of sugar, 29 grams of carbs and more than 3 grams of protein. A high-sugar, low-protein diet can increase hunger pangs and mood swings and leave you with low energy. Not exactly the best way to start the school day. Marketing origins: Cereal companies. How it happened: As Jaya Saxena writes for Serious Eats, "Cereal's position as America's default breakfast food is a remarkable feat, not of flavor or culture, but of marketing and packaging design." It all started, Saxena writes, with Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, manager of the Battle Creek Sanitarium, a Seventh-day Adventist health resort advertised as a place where upper-middle-class Americans could go for a health tune-up. Kellogg, a vegetarian, advocated turning away from meat in favor of yogurt, nuts, and grains. Then, in 1895, C.W. Post, a former Battle Creek patient, founded his own cereal company with Postum, a "cereal beverage intended to replace coffee," as its poster product.
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