Jul 23, 2013
Know Before You Fro!
The frozen yogurt trend swept across the streets of NYC, with hundreds of places to choose from how do you know which one is the BEST one? These places claim that frozen yogurt is a better alternative than regular ice cream, but is it actually true? Yes, it is true to some degree, frozen yogurt uses less fat (or even no fat!) and less cream than ice cream, which is filled with a lot more fat, sugar, and cream. Frozen yogurt also has probiotic characteristics, while ice cream lacks it. However, although froyo is considered the “healthier’ alternative that doesn't mean you should stuff your face until you can't move. Even though some fro-yo flavors are labeled low-fat or no fat, they are usually PACKED with sugar to compensate for the boring flavor from the little to no fat. So even if there’s no fat, there is a heck of a lot of sugar. Many people also think that just because it's healthier, you can have larger qualities and pile up massive amounts of toppings. The key is to limit yourself to a reasonable amount of fro-yo and top it off with some fruit. Below are a few notable fro-yo places around here. Also, keep in mind that the new daily recommendation of sugar a day for women is about 20 grams of sugar a day, while for men its 36 grams daily.
PINKBERRY
Just from scrolling through the Pinkberry website, I can tell you a lot about the sugar content. The first ingredient for each yogurt is non milk fat and the second is sugar. That means that they mostly use nonfat milk in their product, and the second ingredient they use the most is sugar. The original flavor is considered the healthiest option, with 20 grams of sugar per ounce. If you were to get a small cup (1.5 oz) that would equal to about 30 grams of sugar! That’s more sugar than a vanilla cone at McDonalds (19 g) or a Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Peanut Butter Kreme Donut (24 g). Gross! And if you were to get a large cup (3.8 oz), you can forget about that diet! A large cup of original would be about 76 g of sugar, that’s about four times more sugar than the daily recommended intake. Or to put it in food terms, more than a Double Chocolatly Chip Frappachino (59 g) or more sugar than a Cinnabon’s Caramel Pecanbon (47 g). Pinkberry does give customers the option to choose greek yogurt, which is about 9 g of sugar for a small cup. Go with greek yogurt or a small portion of fro-yo, and top it off with things like nuts, almonds, granola, and fresh fruit.
16 HANDLES
16 handles has a lot of fun and tasty non fat flavors like Pineapple Express and Thin Mint Cookies and has fewer grams of sugar than Pink Berry. I consider 16 Handles my guilty pleasure, with so many flavors and toppings (some healthy, some not so healthy) it’s hard to resist piling on masses of fro-yo in your cup. BUT! Resist the temptation! Vanilla is about 18 g per oz, so if you were to have 1.5 ounces it would be about 27 grams of sugar. However, 16 Handles does offer a little more variety than just fro-yo. In addition to frozen yogurt, they also have non-fat tart, non-dairy sorbet, and no sugar added. Try out the no sugar added, it has about 5 grams per ounce (16 Handles are liars, I know). The toppings there are endless, from fruits to yogurt raisins, pick your poison!
RED MANGO
Red Mango is pretty tasty in that it uses more natural ingredients and less artificial sweeteners than other brands. The first ingredient on the list is non fat yogurt, which means that Red Mango uses yogurt as its main ingredients instead of milk like Pink Berry. It’s also sweetened by sugar cane (sucrose), and is one of the last ingredients listed, meaning that they use less sugar in their product. Just the way I like it! A small cup of Original flavor would be about 27 g of sugar, still a mouthful but better than the rest. Remember, it’s all about portions! What I like MOST about Red Mango is their Skinny Sorbetto! It’s dairy-free, low calorie, low fat, and no sugar added (and they mean it this time). Red Mango also has a variety of frosty and fruity smoothies, including a vegan option! How does healthy taste so delicious?
