Food and Nutrition
Coffee and Its Hidden Calories!
By
Aug 17, 2008 - 12:07:33 PM

(HealthNewsDigest.com) - We've been discussing hidden calories in the form of fat. Let's continue by discussing coffee (is it really coffee anymore?) and its hidden calories. Coffee used to be so simple when I had my first cup at my first job, made with a little sugar and maybe a little half n half. Not any more! Now, I spend more time reading the coffee menu than the amount of time I take to drink it. All summer I've see people drink those delicious frozen coffee drinks that look like desserts. And delicious they are, with all sorts of choices. I love coffee and I never used to associate it with a lot of calories until recently that is, when I first wrote about it.

Getting a cup of coffee can still be very simple. Simple, until we decide beyond regular or decaf. There's small or tall, medium or grande, large or Venti (Venti is a registered trademark for one of our favorite coffee houses!), along with black, milk, Latte (half milk), and the calorie laden, frozen "dessert looking" coffees (they are delicious) topped with a mound of whipped cream. I've always assumed that the calories for coffee to be under 50 even when made with whole milk, and the frozen summer coffees to be around 150 if made with skim milk. Well, I learned my lesson well before the calories for were posted (Are we asking for the calorie content yet?)!

Going back in time, when I first tasted a frozen coffee drink, I thought, "this is really good". I had mine made with a little skim, and I felt as though I was having a dessert. Soon after my first one, it became an "almost everyday" habit until I decided to make one at home. After adding 4 packets of sugar to my ice-coffee mix in my blender when I was trying to make one, I gave up because the taste was awful. Ignorance was bliss but it wasn't for long! I soon learned that my skim milk frozen coffee was over 200 calories of sugar (which is contains about 12 teaspoons of table sugar). I also realized that if I continued drinking one every day, my scale would start to head in the wrong direction. Just an extra 200 calories a day over the course of a summer could add up to a 5 pound weight gain, if I did nothing else differently (this means no frozen margaritas, or fourth of July hamburgers!)! How quickly it adds up.

I'm sorry to say that I bring us not such great news about coffee and its hidden calories once again! Of course, if you've been reading my tips you'll know I believe in "trade-offs"; frozen coffee one day a week as our treat, or no salad dressing at that day's lunch! In any case, ignorance is not bliss when we squeeze into our clothing or get weighed at our doctor's office. So, here are some eye-opening facts about one of America's favorite beverages at just one of our favorite coffee bars (no name, but these numbers probably can apply at any coffee bar) with a sampling of what they have listed on their website (grande sizes unless noted otherwise).
Café latte with skim 130 calories with Soy Milk 170 calories
Café mocha with skim 290 whopping calories
Café mocha with reg. milk 360 calories (guess we better stick with skim milk!).
Café Mocha with Soy Milk 320 calories (didn't we think soy milk had a lot less calories? Think again!)
Coffee frappuccino, Mocha w. Whip, venti (24oz.) 525 calories
Cappuccino with reg. milk 180 calories
Cappuccino with skim 110 calories (this surprised even me, no sugar added)
White chocolate mocha with whole 420 calories (no whip crème with this!).
White Chocolate mocha w. nonfat milk no whip, venti 425 calories (Imagine, this is even with non fat milk!)
Café Vanilla Blended coffee with whip 470 calories
Orange Banana Blend 250 calories (this might be good for an after-workout out meal!)

If we keep in mind that "Every Bit Counts" (referring to calories), they do add up when we consume the little extras regularly (not so little, are they?). Our best coffee treat? Cappuccino with skim, which even at the grande level is only 80 calories. Add some powdered chocolate or cinnamon, and we've got the best caloric value. Lastly, if we're a fan of the other well known coffee mostly to- go- place (originally known for their donuts), don't forget to check out their website for nutritional info before ordering. Let's not forget that we haven't even added in that muffin, bagel, scone, or donut yet because ignorance is bliss for only a short time.

Coffee anyone?

June M. Lay M.S.
www,junefit.com
Next week, "More Fat or More Food?
This Week, look for my "Grilled fruit Salad with Yogurt" recipe (*there's no hidden calories!) posted now at www.junefit.com/tips_recipehp.htm We can add 1/2 ounce shaved dark chocolate as an added topping too. Who said fruit desserts can't taste decadent!

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June is Lifestyle Columnist at www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/index.shtml

copyright 2008, junefit. All rights reserved.

Calories quoted taken from Starbucks.com and CSPI and may/may not reflect other similar coffees elsewhere.

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