When you’re cruising through the grocery store for something sweet, you might notice a resurgence of zero-sugar foods and low-sugar treats. These snacks, which were big in the ’90s, seem to be making a comeback.
Nabisco is about to have its own option with a planned rollout of Oreo Zero Sugar. This cookie promises to give you the same Oreo taste you know, but without added sugar. “Oreo Zero Sugar offers the classic taste of Oreo, while allowing you to keep your health and wellness goals,” the Oreo website description reads. The brand also notes that these cookies come in two per pack, noting that this is your “portion control and sweet tooth companion.”
But dietitians have concerns, both about what’s in this cookie and the messaging around it. “It’s okay to have a regular cookie in the context of a well-balanced diet,” Jessica Cording, RD, the author of The Little Book of Game-Changers, tells SELF. Here’s what’s in these cookies, plus what dietitians want you to keep in mind when it comes to sugar-free treats as a whole.
What’s in Oreo Zero Sugar?
The full ingredients list is on the official Oreo website. Here’s what these cookies contain:
- Unbleached enriched flour
- Maltitol
- Canola oil
- Palm oil
- Polydextrose
- Cornstarch
- Cocoa
- Baking soda
- Sorbitol
- Salt
- Soy lecithin
- Chocolate
- Artificial flavor
- Sucralose
- Acesulfame potassium
Worth noting: This cookie contains three artificial sweeteners (maltitol, sorbitol, and sucralose)—keep that in mind for later. The ingredients list for regular Oreo cookies is very similar, but includes sugar and high fructose corn syrup instead of the artificial sweeteners.
Nabisco points out on the label that this is “not a low-calorie food.”
Sugar content aside, Oreo Zero Sugar cookies have a similar nutritional profile to regular Oreos. “It’s basically an Oreo,” Scott Keatley, RD, cofounder of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy, tells SELF.
Two of the zero-sugar cookies contain 90 calories, while two regular Oreos have about 107 calories. (The standard Oreo label lists one serving as three cookies, so you have to do a little math to compare these one-to-one.) The fat content is almost identical too. The only big difference is that regular Oreos contain 9.3 grams of sugar for the same amount you’d eat of Oreo Zero Sugar.
You probably already know this, but sugar-free cookies are not a more nutritious food.
While Nabisco suggests that these cookies are healthy (or, at least, healthier than an average cookie), dietitians say that’s not really the case. “Swapping sugar with sweeteners doesn’t make it more nutritious, and it remains an ultra-processed food with little nutritional benefit,” Keri Gans, RDN, dietitian and host of The Keri Report podcast, tells SELF.
This cookie is “not automatically healthier,” Keatley says. “The bigger question is whether it helps someone keep a pattern they can stick with without feeling deprived or out of control.”
Cording agrees. “What I’ve seen as a dietitian is that people tend to eat more of these products because of the health halo,” she says. “They may also feel like they need to eat more to hit the same level of satisfaction they may get from a lower amount of cookies.”
(A representative for Mondelez International, which owns Nabisco, did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.)
Your GI tract may take a hit from all those artificial sweeteners.
That’s a big concern flagged by dietitians. “Sucralose can make you poop—a lot,” Cording says. But the maltitol and sorbitol used in these cookies can also lead to gas, bloating, or diarrhea, especially if you eat more than you planned, Keatley says.
There may even be a lingering effect on your tastebuds. “For some people, very sweet ‘no sugar’ products can keep the palate trained to expect intense sweetness, which can make less-sweet foods feel less satisfying and sometimes keep cravings active,” Keatley says.
It’s okay to have a regular cookie, according to dietitians.
Zero-sugar foods can be helpful for people who are trying to manage their blood sugar, but they aren’t needed for everyone else, Gans says. (In fact, Cording points out that even people with type 2 diabetes can eat regular cookies, as long as it’s in moderation.)
Ultimately dietitians stress that portion control is what matters. “If someone can comfortably enjoy one or two cookies, choosing the regular version isn’t a big deal,” Gans says. “A small amount of added sugar is unlikely to matter within an overall balanced eating pattern.”
If you like the idea of eating a sugar-free cookie (and are okay with the possibility of some GI issues), dietitians say that’s just fine. But Keatley still suggests thinking of this type of cookie like the standard version.
“Enjoy it on purpose, keep the portion reasonable, and move on,” he says. “Options are helpful, but healthier branding shouldn’t turn a cookie into an everyday staple or a free pass to eat more. The win is a normal relationship with it, not a perfect ingredient list.”