What are You Thinking (with what you're drinking)?

by Lisa P | More from this Blogger

08 Feb 2008 04:43 PM

What are You Thinking (with what you're drinking)?

Many people just don't realize the amount of extra calories they are consuming in the form of beverages. We often wonder why the numbers on the scale simply don't change even though we're eating much less. What we don't realize is that we're often replacing food calories with liquid calories, and liquid calories can be much more dense, quickly consumed and unhealthy than those we might chew.

Following is a list of beverages including soft drinks and fruit juices. Take a look at them and think about how many servings you might consume in one day. The number of calories you're drinking just may surprise you.

Dr Pepper (12 ounce can) 150 calories

Coke (12 ounce can) 140 calories

Hot cocoa made with water (8 fluid ounces) 120 calories

Mountain Dew (12 ounce can) 110 calories

Grapefruit juice (1 cup) 95 calories

Prune juice (1/2 cup) 90 calories

Sweet Iced Tea (8 fluid ounces) 90 calories

Tonic water (8 fluid ounces) 85 calories

Cafe latte with fat-free milk (8 fluid ounces) 80 calories

Grape juice (1/2 cup) 75 calories

Cranberry juice cocktail (1/2 cup) 73 calories

Apricot nectar (1/2 cup) 70 calories

Pineapple juice (1/2 cup) 70 calories

Apple juice or cider (1/2 cup) 60 calories

Orange juice (1/2 cup) 55 calories

Cappuccino with fat-free milk (8 fluid ounces) 50 calories

Tomato juice (1 cup) 50 calories

Vegetable juice (1 cup) 50 calories

Cranberry juice cocktail reduced calorie (1 cup) 45 calories

Coffee (6 fluid ounces) 5 calories

Tea (6 fluid ounces) 5 calories

Lemon juice (2 Tablespoons) 0 calories

Club soda (8 ounces) 0 calories

Diet Soda (12 ounces) 0 calories

Water (8 ounces) 0 calories

If you add sugar to your coffee or tea, be sure to figure in 16 calories for every teaspoon you add.

If you think you're going to be super healthy by using honey instead of sugar, forget about it. Every teaspoon of honey packs a 64 calorie punch. You might as well add high fructose corn syrup!

The next time you take a drink of something, consider your serving size and do the math. You're probably drinking a whole lot more calories than you ever expected.

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Learn more about Lisa P

Lisa used to be a freelance writer and Community Manager for Families.com, but she has finally made the jump to novelist.

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