We Know Figs Are Healthy, but What About Fig Newtons? | Livestrong.com (2024)

FAQs

We Know Figs Are Healthy, but What About Fig Newtons? | Livestrong.com? ›

Fig Newtons can contain a lot of sugar. There are more 700 types of figs, and they've been popular since the 19th century. Love of this healthy, sweet fruit has led to the production of many different chutneys, jams and other dessert products.

The label lists flour, figs, sugar, corn syrup, vegetable oil, salt, corn fiber, oat fiber, baking soda, calcium lactate, malic acid, soy lecithin, sodium Benzoate, and sulfur dioxide. There is no dairy in there or any animal based products, so, yes, Fig Newtons are vegan. However, Fig Newtons are not gluten-free.

The dehydration process of drying this fruit results in a higher concentration of sugar relative to weight, so dried figs have a higher concentration of carbohydrates—mostly in the form of sugar—than fresh figs.

The first thing to note is that fresh figs taste nothing like Fig Newtons. A fresh fig does not have the extreme sweetness, the chewiness, or the noticeable seeds of a dried fig.

Figs are rich in anti-inflammatory antioxidants and provide fiber and smaller amounts of a variety of minerals. They may also support digestive, gut, and menstrual health, improve inflammatory conditions, aid weight management, and offer cancer protection.

Fig Newton Cookies

They are also fairly healthy. Figs are well known for having fiber, which helps with digestion, as well as protein and several vitamins and minerals. This means there are quite a few health benefits of fig bars like fig Newtons.

Here you would learn that fig paste is allowed to have up to 13 insect heads per 100 grams.

2. Try high fiber snack foods such as sesame bread sticks, date-nut or prune bread, oatmeal cookies, fig newtons, date or raisin bars, granola and corn chips. Try natural “laxative-type” foods- bran, whole grain cereals, and prune juice.

Figs are often recommended to nourish and tone the intestines, they act as a natural laxative because of their high fibre content. The fibre they provide also has prebiotic properties, feeding the gut bacteria and promoting a healthy gut environment which, as a result, improves digestive wellness.

Both fresh and dried figs contain a high level of vitamin K. People taking blood-thinning medications such as warfarin need to keep the vitamin K levels in their diet consistent, so they may wish to avoid figs.

How many figs should I eat a day? ›

When it comes to raw fruit, you can easily have 2-3 figs in a day. If you are having dried figs, stick to 3 figs and do not have them without soaking overnight. Our body can absorb the nutrients and digest some dried fruits and nuts in a better way when they are soaked well.

The tiny fig wasps that pollinate the figs die and get totally absorbed as nutrients in the figs. They are not the kind that would sting someone. Wasp allergies apply to being stung. So, no there should not be a problem eating figs.

Yes, fig newtons have a “fig paste” in the center which is made from processing figs with other ingredients like a sweetener.

How to Make Fig Newtons. These cookies are easy to make, requiring just 8 ingredients! Plus, they're naturally sweetened and no-bake (with the exception of toasting your oats and nuts before blending). The filling is a simple blend of dried figs, cinnamon, dates, and orange zest.

Sugar: The sugar used in Fig Newtons comes from various suppliers, some of whom employ a filtration process involving bone char. Bone char is a byproduct of charred animal bones, making it decidedly non-vegan.