With the temperatures dropping and the holidays approaching, many of us may be tempted to get a little festive on our next trip to the coffee shop.
But just be aware that your pumpkin-spice this or peppermint-mocha that will be packing a lot more than caffeine.
Higher in calories and sugar, special seasonal coffee drinks “are definitely not something you want to be drinking every single day,” said Karah Stanley, registered dietitian at the St. Elizabeth Weight Management Center.
One 16-ounce serving of pumpkin-spice latte, for example, can have 50 grams of sugar in it, Stanley said. “That’s packing quite a caloric punch.”
Are there any options?
At Starbucks, the U.S. leader in coffee sales, the popular pumpkin spice recently yielded to other holiday specials, among them the caramel brulee latte, chestnut praline latte, eggnog latte and peppermint mocha latte. They’ll get you in the holiday spirit, but if you like a little holiday cheer in your mug, you have options.
- If you’re at the coffee store, tell them to hold the whipped cream, or ask for low-fat or skim milk. “Those specialty drinks are not always low-fat unless you request them that way,” Stanley said. Or start with the coffee or espresso and build up; ask how many pumps of syrup go typically into a drink and try one or two pumps of a sugar-free variety, if available, instead.
- If you want to treat yourself, do it on a smaller scale. Starbucks’ Grande (16-ounce) caramel brulee latte has a whopping 470 calories and 54 grams of sugar, if made with whole milk and whipped cream. But take it down to a tall (12 ounce), with 2 percent milk and no whipped cream, and you’re down to 280 calories and 39 grams. Short (8 ounces) with skim further whittles your calories to 240.
- Make your own. When you’re the barista, “you know exactly what’s in it,” Stanley said. Try cinnamon, allspice, peppermint ““ whatever you like.
Stanley generally says treats are OK in moderation, and holiday coffee drinks are no different.
“You have to account for those drinks like they’re treats instead of coffees,” she said.
