IT'S official, summer is finally here - the kiddies are out of school, the sun is shining and as a bonus it's actually hot outside.
But before you start complaining that it's too hot and abandon your outdoor adventures I thought I would break down the nutritional information on your favourite refresher. Lucky for you there are many fast food chains and coffee shops that pretty much make the same delicious iced coffee, but should an ice coffee be your goto summer beverage? Unfortunately, all have a ton of sugar! Generally, for the smallest size available you're already looking at approximately 35 grams of sugar. For reference, 345 millilitres of cola contains 39 grams of sugar.
According to the 2012 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, no guidelines are in place for daily sugar intake. However, the American Heart Association recommends reducing your added sugar intake to no more than 100 calories/day for women and 150 calories/day for men. To help digest these numbers, one gram of sugar equates to four calories. Therefore, one iced coffee equals a day's worth of added sugar for both women and men. Added sugar is very different than sugar found naturally in many healthy foods like fruit, so the focus is just on added sugar and sugar from high-calorie foods.
As a side note, it's easy to forget that drinks, like food, have calories. If you eat or drink more calories than you burn off each day, you will gain weight. This is why experts believe that drinks may be related to the current obesity problem.
To make any drink healthier, ask for the smallest size and have it made with skim milk and no whip cream. Whatever drink you choose, enjoy it not as your everyday refresher, rather as an amazing treat on a hot beautiful sunny summer day.
For your everyday refresher, I recommend good old water. To stay well hydrated during the day, aim to drink between six and eight cups of water. One trick is to carry around a water bottle - you'll be surprised how often it needs to be refilled. Also, if you can't stand the taste of water, try adding fresh lemons or cucumbers for some natural flavour.
Cheers! Jessica Pirnak is a dietetics student at the University of British Columbia and intern at the B.C. Cancer Agency and Children's and Women's Hospital. She is a local foodie and is passionate about nutrition and food education. To read more of her articles, visit foodyourself.com.
