It used to be that only athletes ate energy bars. Wrapped in shiny packages, these portable pieces of carbohydrate fuelled marathoners and triathletes to the finish line. But the original PowerBar, launched in 1987, has evolved. With names like CarbZone, Oat-Rageous, Protein2Go, Body For Life and Optimum Energy, today there's a bar for anyone looking for an energy boost.

Dr. Meg Jordan is the Global Medicine Hunter®. A sort of medical Indiana Jones, this plucky medical anthropologist and health journalist searches the globe for healing remedies, tests them for validity and spreads the word about the winners in an entertaining format.

A growing body of evidence, including research presented here Sunday, shows that eating enough fish, chicken, lean meat, low-fat dairy, beans, nuts or other protein-rich foods helps people feel full longer. And scientists are searching for the biological reasons for the increased satiety.

After Sam Hoffman was diagnosed with a brain tumor at the age of 16 and suffered months of chemotherapy, the 6-footer from Marblehead weighed 110 pounds. Nausea and dehydration took their toll on his eating habits. He couldn't stomach high-fat, high-sugar hospital foods and mainly ate the meals his family brought in.

They look like candy bars, have the texture of medium-density fiberboard and pack a protein punch that'll keep you fully fueled for hours.