How Many Calories are you Drinking?

[Guest guest]

How Many Calories are you Drinking?

JoAnn Guest

Dec 19, 2003 22:33 PST

 

http://ahha.org/articles/Rutter.htm

 

Think of Beverages as Liquid Calories Beverages--and not just

alcohol--are a significant, if little recognized, source of calories

in North American diets. Many people, however, seem to believe that

if a calorie is ingested in fluid form, it's a freebie.

 

" They just don't put it in the same category, " says Richard Mattes,

a nutrition professor at Purdue University. " They're not eating.

They're quenching a thirst. " Mattes has done extensive research on

beverage consumption.

 

How Many Calories are you Drinking?

 

Sure, most people know a thick milk shake, a sugary cola or a pint

of beer isn't the best choice for someone on a diet. But how bad

could iced tea be? And a bottle of juice is good for you, right? A

refreshing

Frappuccino? Heck, that's basically a coffee slush, isn't it?

 

Not exactly.

 

When we add up the calories in the ingredients and the sizes in

which the drinks are sold, many drinks contain a surprising number

of calories, enough to derail any weight loss or maintenance regime.

 

" I really believe that beverage consumption is contributing to the

weight issue in a very substantive way, " says Mattes, who notes

there's been a huge jump in sales in virtually all beverages in

recent years.

 

Perhaps nowhere is the issue of calories in drinks more evident than

in the offerings available at the ubiquitous premium coffee shops.

Last summer, the staff of the Tufts University Health and Nutrition

Letter

did some research on the calorie and fat counts of popular summer

drinks.

The newsletter, from the esteemed Friedman School of Nutrition,

Science and Policy at Boston-based Tufts, goes out to about 150,000

people a month.

 

The findings were eye-popping.

 

A Starbucks Venti (large) caramel macchiato with whole milk contains

310

calories and 12 grams of fat.

 

A large Tazoberry and Cream contains 560 calories and 15 grams of

fat, nine grams of which are saturated fat (the kind we're supposed

to avoid).

 

A large Strawberry Fruit Coolatta at Dunkin' Donuts had no fat, but

540 calories. Their large Vanilla Bean Coolatta contained 880

calories and

34 grams of fat - most of which were saturated fat.

" For a moderate-sized, not particularly active woman, that's half

their [required] caloric intake for the day, " Mattes says of the

Coolatta.

 

Larry Lindner, executive editor of the Tufts newsletter, says that

most

people don't realize these drinks are sending their calorie intake

soaring. " And I have a feeling, " he adds, " that if people knew just

how many calories were in these things, if they familiarized

themselves with the numbers, these things would be easier to forego

on a regular basis. "

 

 

Diana Steele, a dietitian in private practice in Vancouver, says she

often sees teenage girls who skip lunch because they're trying to

lose weight, then order coffee or chocolate drinks mounded with whip

cream and laced with syrups in coffee shops.

" Suddenly they're consuming 600 calories in an after-school

beverage, " Steele salys, " and they have no

idea that the calories in that drink are so high because it's not

food. "

 

 

Face it. Beverages are Food

 

That's the thing. A beverage is food. But the head doesn't recognize

it as such. Neither does the stomach. That's because liquids don't

satiate

people the same way solids do.

 

" Beverages, " Mattes explains, " don't make people feel full and as a

consequence they add them to their diet rather than substituting for

other caloric sources. So total caloric intake is going up. " He has

the evidence to prove it.

 

A few years ago, he did a study in which a group

of students were given a 450-calorie soft drink every day for a

month. After a month off, the students were given 450 calories worth

of jelly beans every day for a month. The students logged their

daily food intake

and weight throughout the study. When the students were getting the

jelly beans, they instinctively cut back on other calories. They

made no adjustment, however, when they were getting the sugary drink

and Mattes reports that their weights went up.

 

What about Juice?

 

Another problem might be slotted under the heading " but it's good

for me. " That problem is juice. Juice in and of itself is fine. It

is a healthy part of a balanced diet. But people rarely drink juice

in the

portions the experts recommend (Canada's food guide suggests a

serving of juice is half a cup). Therein lies the difficulty.

 

Individual bottles of juice found in any convenience store or

vending

machine are sometimes so large they actually constitute two or three

servings. " Juice is a healthful food, " Linder says. " But 16 ounces

[which is two cups] at one sitting is not. "

 

Steele urges her clients to get the benefits of juice by eating the

whole fruits.

 

Eating two oranges instead of drinking their juice, she

explains, is more filling and provides more fiber, which is

something

most Canadian diets lack.

 

Soft-Drinks can be Liquid Candy

 

Stelle adds that other popular beverages like non-diet soft drinks

and power drinks are full of calories. These are often calories

someone may not need. " I think that it's OK, " she says. " to have

calories from a glass of pure fruit juice. But

when it comes to something like a SoBe beverage, where you're

getting

350 calories in a bottle and it's pure sugar with some flavoring,

there's no nutritive value. That's like eating a bag of candy. "

 

The same applies to alcohol. Steele calculated that a single drink a

night for 10 months would lead to a six pound weight gain, if the

drinker didn't cut back on other calories.

 

There is Good News

It's not all bad news. While beverages can be a diet problem, they

can also be an easy diet solution. Many people find it easier to

drop a few

pounds by altering the types of beverages they drink than by cutting

back on foods, both Lindner and Steele say. " I don't think people

walk

around, " Lindner says, " thinking, 'I really want a Vanilla Bean

Coolatta and I just can't get my mind off it.' They might think that

about a

piece of double frosted chocolate cake. So I think just a little

education could help people either stay away from these things or

really use them as an occasional treat, " he adds.

 

The idea isn't to cut fluid intake, " Mattes says, " but to switch to

low- or no-calorie beverages. The message should not be don't drink.

Hydration is important. You either have to switch to lower calorie

beverages or you have to consciously control what you drink.

 

©2003 Healthy YOUbbies

 

 

Susan Rutter is an author, publisher, nutritionist, and instructor.

She assists patients and the public make healthy choices and changes

in their lives. You can contact her at healthy.-.

 

This article is part of the article category ENHANCING YOUR LEVEL OF

WELLNESS under section " Nutrition and Supplementation. "

 

http://ahha.org/articles/Rutter.htm