Lessen the impact of ice cream
By Charles Stuart Platkin
You might say that I have ice cream in my blood. My father started his career selling Good Humor ice cream and worked his way up to own one of the first Carvel franchise operations — he actually knew the founder, Tom Carvel.
I wish I could say all the ice cream I ate growing up left me sick of the stuff, but unfortunately that's not the case. So I'm always looking for ways to indulge in ice cream treats without the calories. Here are a few tips I've picked up.
Juice bar vs. Fudgsicle
You might think the fruit bar would be better for you because of the real fruit, but if you're craving chocolate, don't feel guilty about the very low-calorie Fudgsicle.
• Dole Fruit 'N Juice bar, strawberry: 70 calories, 0g fat, 18g carbs
• Fudgsicle, no-sugar-added pops: 45 calories, 0.25g fat, 9g carbs
Soft-serve yogurt vs. Soft-serve ice cream
If you are ordering the fro-yo to watch your waistline, don't bother. Although frozen yogurt has less fat (1.5 grams less per serving and 1 gram less saturated fat), both contain approximately 140 calories per serving. If you're going to get soft-serve, order nonfat frozen yogurt, which is approximately 110 calories.
• Dairy Queen Vanilla Ice Cream (1/4 cup): 140 calories, 4.5g fat, 3g saturated fat, 22g carbs, 3g protein
• TCBY 96 percent fat-free yogurt (1/4 cup): 140 calories, 3g fat, 2g saturated fat, 23g carbs, 4g protein
Wafer vs. Sugar vs. Waffle Cone
I was thrilled to find out that the wafer cone is the best option of the three, at about 20 calories. Sugar cones have between 50 and 60 calories, while waffle cones are about 100 to 160. And watch out for the chocolate-covered waffle cones, which can pack on a whopping 320 calories — even before you add ice cream!
Ben and Jerry's Half-Baked Low-Fat Frozen Yogurt vs. Half-Baked Carb Karma
Believe it or not, Carb Karma has 20 fewer calories than light frozen yogurt (180 vs. 200). But if you're watching cholesterol and fat, beware. Carb Karma has 8 grams of saturated fat and 50 milligrams of cholesterol — more than 2 1/4 times the light frozen yogurt. Plus (I must say) the low-fat yogurt tastes twice as good.
Starbucks Frappuccino Light vs. McDonald's Triple Thick Shake
This might seem like a no-brainer — a Triple Thick Shake sounds like it will give you triple-thick thighs — but beware of the new Starbucks Frappuccino Light. If you order it with the whipped cream, it's pretty close to the shake. Go for the plain Coffee Frappuccino instead. And keep in mind that most of these coffee drinks are desserts, not beverages or refreshments.
• Java Chip Frappuccino Light Blended Coffee with whipped cream (16 oz): 400 calories, 19g fat, 50g carbs, 9g protein
• Frappuccino Light Blended Coffee (16 oz): 150 calories, 1g fat, 30g carbs, 7g protein
• McDonald's shake (16 oz): 580 calories, 17g fat, 94g carbs, 15g protein
Sprinkles vs. Ground Walnuts
You'd think sprinkles would be the clear winner because they're so small and seem so innocuous. But one serving of either nuts or sprinkles has about 200 calories. If you really want one of these toppings, choose the nuts — at least they contain protein and more healthy fat.
• Walnuts (1 oz): 190 calories, 17g fat, 5g carbs, 4g protein
• Sprinkles (4 tablespoons): 220 calories, 4g fat, 46g carbs
Crushed Oreos vs. Hershey's Chocolate Syrup
There is no good choice here. Don't be fooled because the cookies are crushed — that just makes it easier to load two cookies' worth of crumbs onto your frozen yogurt, for an additional 107 calories and 5 grams of fat.
And don't let the "fat-free" fool you — four tablespoons of Hershey's chocolate syrup has 200 calories!
Also note that using peanut butter topping adds about 210 calories, and hot fudge about 140 calories. Best bet: fresh fruit (not in sugary syrup) or go bare!
• Oreo (2 cookies): 107 calories, 5g fat, 15g carbs
• Hershey's Chocolate Syrup (4 tablespoons): 200 calories, 0g fat, 50g carbs
Charles Stuart Platkin is a syndicated health, nutrition and fitness columnist. Write to info@thedietdetective.com.
