6 Beverages With More Sugar Than a Doughnut

Key Points:

• Too much added sugar is tied to weight gain and a higher risk of chronic disease.

• Many popular beverages contain more than 13 grams of added sugar.

• Choosing lower-sugar drinks can help you keep added sugar intake under control.

Choosing healthier foods often starts with reducing added sugar, and there’s a good reason for that. “Added sugars are associated with numerous health harms, including increased risk of weight gain, heart disease and certain cancers,” says Sarah Garone, NDTR, CNC.

The American Heart Association advises men to limit added sugar to 9 teaspoons, or 36 grams, per day, and women to no more than 6 teaspoons, or 25 grams. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans also note that no meal should contain more than 10 grams of added sugar. That may sound like enough room for a sweet treat, but sugar-sweetened drinks can use up that allowance fast, often without you noticing.

It’s also important to distinguish added sugars from the natural sugars found in foods such as fruit, vegetables and dairy. These foods do contain simple sugars that can raise blood glucose, but they also provide fiber, vitamins, minerals, protein and antioxidants that support metabolic health. By contrast, when sugars such as glucose, fructose, sucrose, corn syrup, maple syrup or honey are added in excess on a regular basis, the health effects are less favorable.

From sweet teas to specialty coffee drinks, here are some common beverages that contain more added sugar than a glazed doughnut and deserve a closer look before you drink them.

1. Sweet Tea

Fresh-brewed iced tea is a sugar-free, zero-calorie drink, but sweet tea is a different story. “Although it may seem like a healthier alternative to soda, most iced teas are loaded with added sugar,” says Amy Brownstein, M.S., RDN.

Whether homemade, bottled or served in a restaurant, sweet tea can contain 19 grams or more of added sugar in an 8-ounce serving. Brownstein recommends checking labels carefully, since many sweetened teas use several different sweeteners and can end up with more added sugar than others.

2. Honey-Sweetened Teas

Some sweetened beverages, especially teas, are labeled “sweetened with honey,” which can make them seem healthier than drinks made with sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. “Although regarded as more natural, honey is still considered an added sugar that needs to be monitored,” Brownstein explains. “The difference between cane sugar and honey is their molecular composition, with honey being higher in fructose.”

Popular commercially prepared honey-sweetened teas can contain 18 grams of added sugar in an 8-ounce serving, which is similar to other sweet teas. For metabolic health, sugar and honey have comparable effects, especially when large amounts are added to a beverage.

3. Soda

“They don’t call soda an ‘empty calorie’ drink for nothing,” says Garone, noting that one 8-ounce serving adds 15 grams of added sugar to your diet without the fullness you would get from food.

Those 15 grams of added sugar add 156 calories, but no meaningful nutritional benefit. Regular intake of sugar-sweetened drinks like soda is linked with higher body weight and a greater risk of mortality, cardiovascular disease and cerebrovascular disease.

Diet soda usually relies on artificial sweeteners, which may not have the same direct metabolic harms as the sugar in regular soda. Even so, research has associated heavy diet soda intake with larger waist circumference, diabetes and heart events. Because the reason for this link is still unclear, limiting diet soda may be a smart choice.

4. Lemonade

Whether you drink it fresh, from concentrate, mixed from powder, or bought in a can or bottle, lemonade is almost guaranteed to contain more than 13 grams of added sugar per 8-ounce serving. For example, an 8-ounce can of lemonade has 28 grams of added sugar, while the same amount made from frozen concentrate has 25 grams.

“While all that added sugar may add much-needed sweetness to the tart flavor of lemons, it doesn’t do your health any favors,” says Garone, adding that a regular lemonade habit could raise your risk of inflammation-related chronic disease, even if it seems like a fresh, fruit-forward beverage.

5. Sports Drinks

Sports and electrolyte drinks provide the ingredients needed to support hydration: minerals, vitamins, water and, in many cases, plenty of added sugar. “Sports drinks are often perceived as healthy beverages and used out of context, leading to excessive sugar intake,” says Avery Zenker, RD.

These drinks can contain 15 grams of sugar or more per 8-ounce serving, which can be useful for athletes who need to replenish glycogen during endurance exercise. “The problem is that sports drinks are often consumed by people who aren’t engaging in vigorous activity,” Zenker says.

If you are not refueling during or after exercise or while working in the heat, plain water and a variety of hydrating foods rich in electrolytes, such as whole fruits and vegetables, can be a better way to stay hydrated while boosting vitamin and mineral intake.

6. Coffee Drinks

Plain coffee, whether hot or iced, contains no added sugar and even offers some health benefits. But flavored syrups, sweet cold foam and whipped cream can quickly drive the sugar content up. “Coffee drinks, like blended frozen and seasonal drinks, both tend to be laden with excess sugar,” says Kendra Haire, RDN, adding that four pumps, or about 2 tablespoons, of vanilla syrup can add more than 20 grams of added sugar to a drink.

You can cut the sugar in almost any coffee order by asking for half the usual amount of flavoring and sweetener or by enjoying the natural sweetness of dairy milk in an unsweetened latte or cappuccino.

Drink These Instead

Our Expert Take

An occasional sugary drink will not derail an otherwise healthy lifestyle, but regular consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages can push added sugar intake to unhealthy levels. The biggest issue with many sweet drinks is how much added sugar is packed into each serving, often far more than expected. Check labels to see how much added sugar is in your drink, and choose more nutritious alternatives when you can.

Read the original article on EatingWell