It appears you have not yet registered for SparkPeople. To get a free nutrition and fitness plan and join our community click here....

Nutrition Articles     |    Meals and Food

PRINT Share
Add This to My SparkFavorites
SparkPeople Sponsors help keep the site free!
 

Super Healthy Soups

How to Make a Healthy Selection

-- By Becky Hand, Licensed & Registered Dietitian
Take stock the next time you walk through the soup aisle at your local grocery store. Soup can be good and healthy food. It can be a tasty way to add healthy beans, legumes, grains and vegetables to your diet. It's a convenient, yet inexpensive way to add protein, vitamins, minerals and fiber to your diet. And soup is both comforting and filling—a hot, savory bowl can help take the chill out of the fall and winter seasons. Want more reasons to ladle up?
  • Soup may curb your appetite. Studies show that people who eat broth or vegetable-based soups (not creamy or high-fat ones) as the first course of a meal consume fewer total calories during their meal. In fact, study participants consumed 20% fewer calories when they started their meal with soup!
  • Soup can help you slow down. Eating a bowl of soup involves spooning, slurping, smelling, tasting, chewing, and swallowing. This helps you slow down your eating time instead of inhaling your food. Slower eaters tend to notice signs of fullness sooner and consume fewer calories by better enjoying their food in the moment.
  • Soup stimulates the senses. These warm concoctions have unique aromas, tastes, enjoyable temperatures and visual interest, which add to the pleasure you experience when eating.
But beware! Canned soups can be loaded with sodium and fat. But you can make healthy choices in the soup aisle by going straight for the nutrition label. Pay attention to serving size, as many cans contain two or more servings. Look for soups with the following nutrient levels per 1-cup serving:
  • 250 calories (or less) per serving, to keep your diet in check.
  • 3 grams of fat (or less) per serving, to protect your heart.
  • 3 grams of fiber (or more) per serving, for filling power.
  • 600 mg of sodium (or less) per serving, to help keep blood pressure in check.
In addition to these guidelines, you can boost the nutrition, flavor and filling power of your soup with the following additions:
  • Add your favorite herbs and spices to boost the flavor of reduced-sodium soups. Experiment with pepper, basil, parsley, oregano, garlic, ginger, or salt-free seasoning blends like Mrs. Dash.
  • Add calcium and protein (without extra fat) by reconstituting your soup with skim milk, evaporated skim milk, non-fat dry milk powder, or calcium-fortified soymilk instead of water, whole milk or cream.
  • Add frozen or leftover veggies to increase the fiber, vitamins and minerals in your soup. Spinach, broccoli, corn, celery, carrots and potatoes work well in most soups.
  • Add beans and whole grains for more fiber, protein and filling power. Try potatoes, beans, lentils, lima beans, brown rice, barley, or whole wheat pasta.
The following list contains some popular soups (in alphabetical order) that fit the recommendations above. These brands and varieties are available at your local grocery store or online. This product information may change, however, so always check nutrition labels before you buy.

Healthy Canned Soups (Nutrition Information per 1-cup serving)

Soup Brand and Variety Calories Fat (g)
Protein (g)
Fiber (g)
Sodium (mg)
Amy’s, Alphabet 80 0
3 2 580
Amy’s, Black Bean Vegetable 130 1.5 6 5 430
Amy’s, Butternut Squash 100 2.5 2 2 580
Amy’s, Minestrone 90 1.5 3 3 580
Amy’s, No Chicken Noodle 90 3 5 2 540
Amy’s, Vegetable Barley 70 1 2 3 580
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky Beef Barley 140 2 9 5 480
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky Chicken Noodle 120 2.5 7 1 480
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky Chicken/Sausage Gumbo 140 2.5 8 3 480
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky New England Clam Chowder 120 2 6 3 480
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky Old Fashioned Vegetable Beef 110 2 7 3 480
Campbell ’s Healthy Request, Chunky Vegetable 120 1 4 4 480
Campbell ’s Select, Chicken with Egg Noodles 100 2.5 7 2 480
Campbell ’s Select, Italian Wedding Soup 120 2.5 7 2 480
Campbell ’s Select, Mexican Style Chicken Tortilla 130 2.5 8 3 480
Campbell ’s Select, Savory Chicken/Long Grain Rice 110 1.5 7 2 480
Healthy Choice, Bean and Ham 180 2 11 10 480
Healthy Choice, Chicken Dumpling 140 2.5 9 3 480
Healthy Choice, Chicken and Rice 110 1.5 7 3 480
Healthy Choice, Chicken Tortilla Style 160 2 10 4 470
Healthy Choice,  Country Vegetable 110 2 5 4 480
Healthy Choice, Fiesta 120 2 6 3 480
Healthy Choice, Garden Vegetable 120 0.5 5 5 480
Healthy Choice, Hearty Chicken 130 2 9 3 480
Healthy Choice, New England Clam 110 1 5 2 480
Healthy Choice, Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle 100 1.5 9 2 480
Healthy Choice, Split Pea and Ham 170 2 9 3 480
Healthy Choice, Vegetable Beef 130 1 9 4 480
Healthy Choice, Zesty Gumbo 100 2 6 4 480
Pritikin, Chicken with Pasta 60 0.5 3 2 290
Pritikin, Chicken and Rice 80 1 3 0 290
Pritikin, Hearty Vegetable 80 0 3 2 290
Pritikin, Lentil 130 0 9 6 290
Pritikin, Split Pea 180 0.5 12 7 290
Progresso Healthy Favorites, Chicken Gumbo 110 1.5 7 2 450
Progresso Healthy Favorites, Chicken Noodle 90 1.5 7 1 450
Progresso Healthy Favorites, Garden Vegetable 100 0 3 3 450
Progresso Healthy Favorites, Minestrone 120 2
5
4
470

Healthy Soups Cups and Microwavable Soup Bowls (Nutrition Information per 1-cup serving)

Soup Brand and Variety Calories  Fat (g) Protein (g)
Fiber (g)
Sodium (mg)
Campbell ’s Chunky Classic Chicken Noodle  110 3 7
1
480
  Campbell ’s Chunky Chicken/Sausage Gumbo  130 2.5
8 3
480
  Campbell ’s Select, Italian Wedding Soup  120 3
7 2 480
  Campbell ’s Select, Mexican Style Chicken Tortilla  130  2.5 8
 3 480
 Healthy Choice, Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle  110 2
8
 3 480
 Healthy Choice, Beef Potato Roast  110  1  7 5 480
 Healthy Choice, Chicken with Rice 90
 1.5 6
2 480
 Healthy Choice. Country Vegetable  100  0.5 4 5 480
 Healthy Valley Fat Free, Chicken Noodle Vegetable  110 0 5 3 390
 Healthy Valley Fat Free, Creamy Potato Broccoli  80 0
3 4 390
 Healthy Valley Fat Free,  Garden Split Pea  110 0 7 4 290
 Healthy Valley Fat Free, Spicy Black Bean Couscous  130 0 6 5 290
 Healthy Valley Fat Free, Zesty Black Bean Rice 100
0 5
4 320

Healthy Dried Soups (Nutrition Information per 1-cup serving)

Soup Brand and Variety Calories Fat (g)
Protein (g)
Fiber (g)
Sodium (mg)
 Fantastic Foods, Dutch Split Pea
 120  1  8  5  580
 Fantastic Cha Cha Chili Bean  110  1.5  6  7  580
 Tasty Adventure, Black Bean  210  1  13  9  530
 Tasty Adventure, Golden Pea  220  1  15  5  500
 Tasty Adventure, Minestrone  160  0.5  10  9  250
 Tasty Adventure, Navy Bean  190  0  13  9  450
 Tasty Adventure, Split Pea  220  1  16  16  500
 Tasty Adventure, Sweet Corn Chowder  190  1  13  5  470
Page 1 of 1         Return to Main nutrition Page >

PRINT Share
Add This to My SparkFavorites
  Click here to to redeem your SparkPoints
  You will earn 3 SparkPoints




 


Related Content


About The Author
Becky Hand Becky Hand
Becky is a registered and licensed dietitian with almost 20 years of experience. Through her company, An Ounce of Prevention, she makes nutrition principles practical, easy to apply and fun. See all of Becky's articles.


Member Comments About This Article
See All 10  |  Leave A Comment


Today On SparkPeople
Featured Article
Senior Health and Fitness

Find tips and support that will help you stay healthy through your golden years.

Read More
MessageBoard Hot Topics
Top Searches
Lying Row & Rotation on Ball
Tone your upper back and shoulders with this exercise on the ball.
Featured Recipe
Peanut and Sesame Noodles

Served cold or hot, these tangy yet sweet noodles are rich and tasty.

See This Recipe on SparkRecipes
Activity Stats
  • Calories Burned: 6,929,370,637
  • Pounds Lost: 9,202,748
  • Cups Water Drank: 212,954,188
  • SparkAmerica Minutes: 939,748,169
Join SparkPeople For Free!
Get a personalized diet and fitness plan, great newsletters, post to our message boards, and even your own personal SparkPage!

Join Now For Free!