Twinkies

Breakdown

Ultra-processed · 13 ingredients to avoid

Hostess Twinkies scores 5/100 on Tallow — our avoid band. That number comes from what is on the label: the ingredients, how processed it is, and what it is packaged in. It is not a verdict on your diet — Tallow does not weigh calories, portion size or how often you eat it, so a high score means the ingredients are clean, not that the food is unlimited.

Hostess Twinkies lists 33 ingredients, starting with Sugar, Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour, Water, Corn Syrup and High Fructose Corn Syrup. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the first few make up most of what you are eating.

At 5/100 Hostess Twinkies scores worse than most cookies we have scored. A higher-scoring option in cookies is Ava Organics Organic Coconut Crispy Rollers Original Coconut at 100/100.