FUEL: August 2012

Cool Summer Treats.......Some may not be so cool......

Wow.  August already.  We’re already humming the tune, “See You In September”..remember the Staples commercial that comes on this time every year?  You know the one...mopey kids in tow and a dad driving a shopping cart kicking up his heels at the thought of good ol’ school days approaching fast...

BUT, the good news is, there’s a few more weeks of summer - which means there’s still time for backyard BBQ, swimming and summertime treats!  

While the sun’s still hot, we’ve got the low-down on lots of cool treats, from the worst to the best:

Full-fat, regular ice cream, including shakes and other ice cream treats:
Buyer and eater beware!  Too much of a good-tasting thing can be too much indeed.  Pay attention to labels when buying these products; the labeled serving size might be significantly smaller than what you’d dish out in one sitting, which packs on extra calories, fat and sugar.  Opt instead for reduced calorie treats, but again, beware of “extras” or “fillers” on the ingredient list that you don’t need!

Flavored Ice Pops
Yikes.  Avoid these like it’s your job.  There are no redeeming qualities to these, particularly since they are chock full of the bad - high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavorings and food colorings!

Sorbet/Italian Ice
There’s a wide range of offerings with sorbet - look for products that are low fat to fat free and have as few ingredients listed on the nutritional label as possible.  The more the ingredients, the more “filler” there is, which can be artificial or otherwise bad for you.  Watch the sugar content on these as well.

Fudge Pops
Good ol’ fudge pops are much like sorbet; pay attention to the ingredient list (the less the better) and keep an eye on the sugar content.  

Frozen Yogurt
Frozen yogurt came onto the scene with a bang - tastes like ice cream, looks like ice cream but made from yogurt, a healthy food!  It must be good for me, right?  Well, sorta.  It’s not real yogurt unless it contains live, active cultures (probiotics) which many brands do not have (read the label!).  Fro-yo is also lower in fat and less calories than regular ice cream, but still contains about double the amount of sugar than regular yogurt (and that’s before toppings!).  Bottom line:  read the label, don’t overdo your portion size, and go easy on the toppings!

Real Fruit Ice Pops
These ice pops are made from fruit and fruit juice with very few ingredients otherwise.  Some actually have big chunks of fruit in them and are much lower in calories than other frozen treats.  Just watch the sugar content and avoid those brands that list sugar as the first ingredient.

Smoothies
Again, there’s a wide range of offerings when it comes to smoothies, and the same rule applies to the ingredient list: less is more.  Avoid smoothies which contain lots of fillers or ingredients you can’t easily pronounce, or are loaded with fat, sugar or calories.  Look for those which have only a few ingredients - or make your own from fresh fruits and vegetables (yes!  greens like spinach or kale are a great add-in to your favorite fruit smoothie and you won’t even taste them!).  Just remember, just because it’s a smoothie doesn’t automatically mean it’s healthy......unless of course they’re from FuelGood because we’ve already done the hard work for you (OK, that was shameless).......Otherwise, CHECK THAT INGREDIENT LIST!


Enjoy the rest of your summer...and see you in September!

Written by Lindsay Eisenhart, a self-proclaimed Nutrition Geek.  You can find Lindsay balancing life as a mom of 3, manager of Pro-Activity's Fuel Good Cafe, and training for her third marathon (NYC '12)!