Re Think Your Drink

Do you start your day with a cafe latte or iced coffee?  Do you enjoy a soda or sweet tea during lunch and dinnertime?  Those tasty sweet treats may seem like an innocent way to wet your whistle but in reality they are full of sugar and can literally weigh you down.  Beverages such as these as well as fruit punch, juice, smoothies, lemonade, sports and energy drinks supply the body with nothing more than liquid calories.  Sugars can be naturally present in foods, such as fructose in fruit or lactose in milk, or they may be added to foods and beverages. Added sugars, also known as caloric sweeteners, are sugars and syrups that are added to beverages at the table or during processing which provide calories but few or no nutrients.

Like food we want our beverages to supply our bodies with health benefits.  Try drinking more water, milk and/or soy milk .

So how much sugar is in your favorite beverages?  Let’s investigate! 

One of the most popular beverages is soda which is mostly water, sugar or sugar substitute and some flavoring. Sugared sodas are a source of empty calories.   A typical 20 oz. soda usually contains a total of 70 grams of sugar.  Knowing that 4 grams of sugar is equal to 1 teaspoon of sugar, you can figure out that there are about 18 teaspoons of sugar in that 20 oz. bottle of soda.  It’s important to pay attention to serving sizes because this 20 oz bottle of regular soda contains 2.5 servings, which adds up to about 250 calories.  Always check the Nutrition Facts label and be aware of the calories in one can or bottle of a beverage.  When you do opt for a sugar-sweetened beverage, go for the small size.

Here are some other popular sugar-sweetened beverages and the amount of sugar they contain.  Will you Re-Think Your Drink?

* 16 oz. Snapple Peach Green Tea has 40 grams of sugar = 10 teaspoons of sugar

* 20 oz. Vitamin Water has 33 grams of sugar = 8 teaspoons of sugar

* 16 oz. RockStar has 62 grams of sugar = 16 teaspoons of sugar

* 24 oz. Propel has 6 grams of sugar = 1.5 teaspoons of sugar

* 32 oz. Gatorade has 56 grams of sugar = 14 teaspoons of sugar

* 12 oz. 100% orange juice has 42 grams of sugar = 10.5 teaspoons of sugar

* 9.5 oz. Starbucks Vanilla Frappuccino has 31 grams of sugar = 8 teaspoons of sugar

To read more about sugar and beverage intake, read my article in Solano Fit Magazine at http://www.sofitmagazine.com/SeptOct-2011.php

And make every sip count!

NO CALORIE CITRUS COOLER

(From The Biggest Loser Simple Swaps)

Ingredients

1 lemon, sliced

1 lime, sliced

1 orange, sliced

10 red grapes

10 green grapes

4 cups water

Mint leaves

Directions

Wash fruit thoroughly before slicing. Add the lemon, lime, orange, grapes, and water to a pitcher. Stir to mix the fruit. Refrigerate until chilled, then serve. Add mint leaves for added flavor.