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Cool Summer Treats That Won't Wreck Your Diet
When the temperature is soaring outside, nothing cools you inside better than an old-fashioned ice cream cone. Unfortunately for those watching their weight as well as the weather, splurging on high-fat, high-calorie calorie ice cream isn't exactly recommended on a regular basis.
"A half cup of ice cream is like a glass of milk and three pads of butter," says Lisa Dorfman, MS, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
But experts say most people's diets can accommodate more moderate indulgences, such as the bevy of new reduced-fat and low-calorie frozen treats arriving now in grocery stores, such as low-carb ice cream, low-fat frozen yogurt, and fruit juice bars. And with a little creativity, you can stock your freezer with healthy, homemade treats to get you through the dog days of summer.
Compare Labels in the Freezer Aisle
With a growing array of frozen desserts and ice cream substitutes that promote themselves as "healthy" or good for people trying to lose weight, nutrition experts say it can be confusing for people to find products that meet their own nutritional needs.
Dawn Jackson, RD, says you can't assume that just because a product is touted as low-carb, low-fat, or "diet" that it's good for you or will fit into your weight loss plan.
"You really can't use outside marketing or advertising of these products to make the decision for you on if you should buy it or not," says Jackson, who is also a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. "You really have to flip to the nutrition facts panel on the back."
"The predominant, overriding factor of choice is calories since most people are choosing these products to maintain a healthy weight," says Jackson. "It has nothing to do with how many carbs or how much fat is in it."
Depending on your health status, other nutritional factors to consider may include how much saturated fat, sugar, cholesterol, and sodium the product contains.
"Oftentimes, if you get a product that is fairly low in calories and fairly low in saturated fat, all the other things fall into place," says Jackson.
Dorfman, a registered dietician who lives in Miami, knows a thing or two about beating the heat as a marathon runner. She says when choosing between an item that's low in fat but high in sugar and one that's low in sugar but high in fat, it may be safer to splurge on the one that's higher in sugar and lower in fat if you want to cool off without piling on the pounds.
"The fat is going to stay with you because you're not using as much energy. You move more slowly in the hot weather," says Dorfman. "Fat takes time to use. You've really got to be out there burning away to use a fat source."
"You want to eat easily assimilated food that's easy to metabolize and digest, which means food high in carbs," says Dorfman. "Sugars digest the fastest, that's why they're called simple sugars."
"If people following a low-carb diet are going to eat sugar at any time, summer is the time to do it," Dorfman tells WebMD.
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