LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
Did you know that what you drink could be sabotaging your weight loss goals? The beverage industry is saturated with drinks that tout all sorts of benefits. From improved thinking to muscle building to immune enhancing, they all advertise a reason for you to buy it.
Interestingly, many of these drinks are full of calories.
Starting with breakfast, you stop by the coffee shop to get a latte. If you don't specify, this beverage is likely being made with 2% or whole milk, combined with your choice of sugary-flavoring - that drink is costing you about 250-300. Moving on to mid-morning, thinking you are doing yourself good, you get the bottle of orange juice from the vending machine. That will cost you 150-200 calories. During lunch, you drink a large sweet tea, which contains more than 300 calories. Later in the afternoon, you get that crazy mid-afternoon slump, so you grab a 16-ounce bottle of Mt Dew or Coke, which adds up to 250 calories. Later at dinner, you have sweet tea, one glass of wine or one beer with your meal, which is about 150 calories each. By days end, you consumed at least 1,250 calories in five beverages!
What about cutting calories by choosing beverages with artificial sweeteners like Splenda, Sweet-n-Low, Equal or Stevia? Research is suggesting that the use of sugar substitutes could be one of the many causes of our obesity dilemma.
Studies indicate artificial sweeteners mask our ability to identify true sweetness. As a result, our bodies are losing the ability to equate sweet with calories. This drives our hunger, which leads us to want to munch or have something later after we finished off our Diet Coke.
Now what? You may be asking "What can I drink?" Well, plain water is always best and is the most quench-reducing beverage. There are lots of health claims associated with tea as well, so choose unsweetened black or green tea. Lastly, don't avoid low-fat milk or soy milk. Though these do contain calories, they are a fabulous source of protein, calcium, and vitamin D, phosphorous and healthy carbohydrates.
Next time you are searching for the beverage of choice, remember these calories could be preventing you from reaching the weight goals you desire ...so choose wisely and calorie-free.